#yeah she is here but she wants privacy so I’ll respect that | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lani-heart · 28 days

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|| series masterlist || next // previously ||

genre(s) -> angst, fluff, non-idol, hybrid au, poly au paring(s) -> ( eventually ) ATEEZ x reader warning(s) -> mention of abandonment issues, stealing, mention of abuse, mental health words -> 2.5k

abstract -> never worry someone who could blackmail you as punishment...

mingi’s perspective

How was I this unlucky?

I should’ve listened to Yunho… I shouldn’t have robbed her. She always had one of her hybrids around and of course, she had one yesterday… Why wouldn’t she?

“Hey, buddy. You’re done with the evaluation today. You're code green!” One of the workers said and I nodded.

He kept writing things on that clipboard of his… in front of the kennels…

“I wanna see Yunho,” I muttered and he sighed. “His owner took him. I doubt you’ll be able to see them unless they come here.” He said as he led me inside the facility again. I missed him.

“What do you want? Money? Name your price!!” I heard as we went to the reception area. “Mingi!” I heard as I saw Yunho. I came up to him and hugged him but I saw he winced a little bit.

“I’m sorry” I apologized and he chuckled. “It’s okay. We’ll be together soon” he said and I doubt that’ll ever happen. Empty promises… he often liked to give me false hope.

“Miss, we can't give you her phone number because you asked. That’s a violation of privacy and security—“ ”I don’t care! That bitch got my husband fired!” She yelled hysterically. “The girl is apparently a CEO's daughter and now he’s fired because of how she treated her yesterday,” Yunho said and I laughed. It was deserved.

“I’ll pay you… a thousand dollars” she offered and I sighed. She’ll never change… but I guess that's just who she is… “Come on, Mingi '' I heard one of the workers wanting to lead me away. “Huh? Please can I stay for a little?” I begged and he sighed but nodded. He was unleashing me when the receptionist came up.

“Chenle, can’t I just give her y/n’s phone number and get a thousand dollars?” the boy asked and I almost laughed. It was easy money and for a lot.

“Is it really worth it?” the other boy… Chenle asked. “Huh?! Of course, it is! I’m sorry you’re so rich you can afford anything like y/n” he pouted… He was also rich? Must be nice… being human and no worries.

“If you give her y/n’s phone number she’ll kill you” Chenle warned and the receptionist pouted. “She’ll understand,” he said and Chenle scoffed. “You’re playing with fire,” Chenle said and the receptionist shrugged.

“I’m sorry but I have a business to attend to,” the doctor said as he left my previous owner…

“What are you doing here?” She asked while looking at me. “What if I call y/n to come here? That wouldn’t be a violation of privacy?” The receptionist offered and she smirked.

“Then do it,” she said but he put his hand out. She rolled her eyes and gave him a check of what I assumed to be a thousand.

“She’s gonna kill him, '' Chenle muttered to himself and it seemed to get Yunho's attention. “Is she scary?” Yunho asked and the worker sighed “y/n? Kinds of… I mean she only gets angry and she already humiliated and insulted one of her hybrids so yeah she’ll be mad to be tricked by Haechan'' he explained and I realized she protected her hybrids.

She really did care a lot for them.

“y/n!!” The receptionist said. “Idiot” Chenle muttered. “Kun wants to do a last-minute check on San. Hmm? No, it’s nothing serious but he wants to go over some lab results he missed from his last check-up” the receptionist said.

“Ok, thank you. See you see y/n” he said and told the devil herself to sit down.

“Easy!” He said to Chenle and the boy only scoffed. “Even if I was in debt like you, I wouldn’t mess with y/n. She got her husband fired, she can get you fired. You know how much Kun respects her” Chenle said and the boy chuckled.

“But a thousand dollars!” He said and he rolled his eyes. “Haechan, you’re dead. Take care of Mingi, I actually have work to do unlike you” he said as he left me with Haechan.

“I heard you were code green. Congratulations!” He said and I smiled while looking at Yunho. “Is y/n a bad person?” Yunho asked and Haechan shook her head.

“One of the best people. She’s just scary when mad, she is a CEO’s daughter” he chuckled and I sighed. Eventually, I was just sitting in silence by Yunho… I missed him a lot. We were never separated for this long… I was alone.

It didn’t even take long until I saw the familiar girl but with her panther hybrid… a hybrid that Yunho seemed to be scared of in the rare chance he accompanied her. Haechan approached her and I heard him apologize in advance.

“y/n right?” the devil said and the girl glared at the receptionist who was admiring his check.

“Look, I want you to take back whatever kid bratty behavior this is. You’re messing with people's lives honey and—“ “I don’t really care what you have to say. If you’re so worried about your lives you would've been nicer to others” she said and the devil scoffed.

“Oh come on! Just tell daddy that what you said was some joke and that—""Why don’t you tell your husband for a divorce since I feel bad his career was ruined because of your mouth” she said and I felt my eyes widen. I looked at Yunho who had the same expression. The devil was gonna slap her but the hybrid seemed to react faster when he grabbed her hips and pushed her back.

He growled at her for attempting to hit her.

“What’s going on here?!” I heard as I saw the doctor. “Look, miss, you need to leave before I call the police.” The doctor said, “You should call the police, she's crazy,'' y/n said and the devil incarnate grabbed Yunho's collar and took him with her.

“Why’d you come?” The doctor asked and I was now alone. Yunho is gone again… I had no one… again.

“I don’t know. Haechan, why was I here again?” She asked annoyedly and the boy smiled awkwardly.

“I’m gonna take my fifteen minute break”

“Sorry y/n and San” Kun said and I shook my head. “It's not your fault and I can't blame Haechan too much, he is a student in debt.'' I said and he smiled softly while bowing.

“Can I ask how the situation is going?” I asked and he sighed.

“Yunho and Mingi were both adopted at a young age from breeders. Yunho is a golden retriever hybrid, whilst Mingi is a wolf hybrid. However, he was the runt of the litter whilst Yunho was the only hybrid born from his mother. Their owner originally wanted to adopt only one hybrid but adopted the two” he explained.

“But why would she change her mind?” San asked and I could tell Kun was a bit stressed with how he started organizing his paperwork.

“They're a bonded pair. Almost like mates, but being separated is affecting Mingi's health. So it wasn't recommended to separate them when they were so young and it still isn’t” he explained and I felt bad for the wolf. “It’s almost as if San or Wooyoung would be separated from you. Even though your tigers and dog hybrid care about you, those two are unhealthily attached to you…” he said and I knew what he meant. How they reacted when they thought I was dead was… an example.

“What’s the difference between the two then? She seems to prefer the dog?” San asked and Kun agreed. “She explained that she didn’t expect the hybrids to be so tall yet so big in size. She has kids and she even claimed that he attacked her kids, but he isn't remotely violent at all. The golden retriever would do more damage before the wolf would” he explained and I was assuming she lied about it to get rid of him easily.

“I want him to apologize to you,” San said to me and I looked at him a little shocked. “San, he was doing it to survive-” “He still stole from you…” he said and I turned to Kun who looked at me a little mischievously… “Why are you looking at me that way?” I asked and he chuckled softly.

“Here,” he said as he handed me a pamphlet for… fostering hybrids.

“No–” me and San said but were both interrupted. “For now, so he can forget about Yunho, he’s going through depression and all of the green code hybrids have been transferred or can’t be with other hybrids. He is going through a dependent disorder, which I think can be broken by being with other hybrids” he said and I really felt bad and a little guilty… even though I shouldn’t.

“Just for a week” he begged and I sighed. Before I could deny he reminded me why I hate men. “You owe me for letting you adopt the two tiger hybrids and stressing me out,” he said and I scoffed.

“Fine,” I said knowing I couldn’t do anything with that card he pulled. “But he isn’t staying with us permanently right?” San asked and I shook my head.

Kun soon called in Jisung who was leading us to Mingi… “Another hybrid? Are you–” I interrupted him by showing him the pamphlet and he laughed. “You’re getting blackmailed by Kun?!” he let out and I rolled my eyes.

“Mingi, come on we want you to meet someone,” he said as he looked up at his sitting position to widen his eyes in shock and I could tell he was a little scared.

“I-I’m sorry! R-really I… I don't–” “Calm down, buddy. Deep breaths she isn't gonna do anything to you. She’s here to help, think of it as your treatment” he explained and the wolf nodded slowly not knowing what was happening.

“Ok so the foster hybrid process is–”

mingi’s perspective

My treatment was under a foster hybrid program with y/n. The woman I stole from… the woman who I shouldn't have stolen or else I would’ve been with Yunho… a woman with five hybrids who will hate me.

I expect her to get back on me… maybe starve me? Or hit me? Any form of punishment

I don’t know yet… Her hybrids seem pretty happy and healthy? I couldn’t assume though, she might be an awful person and abuse them… but Yunho said he didn’t think so.

“We’re here, you’ll be sharing with my tiger hybrid, Hongjoong,” she said and I think she meant the tiger that was with her the day we were caught… the one who almost attacked us?

“y/n! You're back! Yeosang is being mean… ” I saw a fox hybrid happily approach her only to stop at the sight of me. “You started… it?” I soon saw a dog hybrid glare at me… both were confused at seeing an unknown hybrid in their home.

“This is Mingi… Kun asked me a favor and we’ll be fostering him for a week” she explained and the fox scoffed. “Fostering?” the dog said, confused. “It's a program where you can trial run a hybrid to see if they are a good fit for you” the fox explained and the dog glared.

“No! The tigers are enough and now him! You didn’t even ask us!” he said angrily. “The doctor technically blackmailed her to take him. He won’t stay here for long… only a week” the panther glared at me.

I already didn’t feel wanted.

The fox and dog glared at me. “Come on… don’t be mean,” she said softly while approaching the fox hugging him. He hugged her back tight… She also smiled sweetly at the dog who caressed her head.

“Fine… but there's no room for him in my room with Seonghwa, he’s already enough to deal with,” the dog said and she smiled softly. ‘He’ll be with Hongjoong” she said and he laughed.

“Tell him that, he literally locks himself in there,” he said and I think my roommate won’t like me already.

“Is y/n back?” I heard as I saw the two tigers who stopped at the sight of me. “YOU!” the orange tiger yelled and I panicked. “Why is he here?!” he yelled and I wanted to leave… bury myself in a hole.

“You know him?” the panther asked and he scoffed.

“He’s the wolf hybrid who robbed y/n!” he said and they all looked at me hatefully… this wasn’t a good idea. “Come on… he did it to survive. Hongjoong don’t act like you never wanted to escape. All of you did besides Wooyoung” she scolded and they all looked away from her but the fox.

“His friend was taken away from him. So be nice, he doesn’t have a home and he’s not as lucky as you guys” she said and they nodded. “Sorry y/n,” they said.

“Hongjoong, he’ll be sharing rooms with you– “ he looked shocked and was about to argue “Only temporary! Please?” she asked and he sighed but didn’t have any other choice but to nod even though I could tell he didn’t want to.

“Mingi, are you hungry?” she asked me and I was but I didn’t know if this was a trap… she didn’t seem bad. They all seemed like happy hybrids. I shook my head despite not eating today.

“Hongjoong show him your new room okay?”

“I’m sorry for what she said to you by the way,” I said to the tiger who I saw froze for a second before shaking his head. “It’s not your fault… you should be apologizing to y/n for stealing from her. And for tricking her like the two of you did, she felt betrayed” he explained and I nodded.

“Yunho really liked her…” I muttered and he didn't say anything.

“I really like your hair,” I said and he smiled softly. “Thanks… y/n said I could get it done. I was overdue for a haircut,” he said and I smiled softly.

“I’ve been to your show before,” I said… and he sighed. “I’m sorry you went through that…” I added and he nodded. “Just don’t mention it around me or Seonghwa… he's the other tiger hybrid,” he said and I nodded.

“Anything else I should avoid?” I asked and he nodded. “Don’t get too close to San… he’ll attack you. He isn’t too good with new people especially hybrids” he explained and I was curious as to why…

“Also don’t show, Wooyoung, you're annoyed with him. He’ll be upset. While staying away from Yeosang he’s very possessive of y/n '' he explained and I was overwhelmed.

“What?” I asked and he chuckled.

“You’re an intruder. y/n is our mate, while you're an unmated male in our territory. San will attack you if you're too close, Yeosang will talk badly about you to y/n, Seonghwa will likely avoid you, and I’m also cautious of you… Wooyoung is the best bet. If you befriend him the others will like you also.

I needed to befriend Wooyoung… who was he again?

“I don’t know how much progress you’ll make in a week though”

@wonuangel @danirael @angelsaway @krissroo @minkysmilk @mayonnaise-on-toast @robertsbbygirl @superbbananananana @hyukssunflower @kitty4hwa @justconniez @senpai-of-doom @kibs-and-bits @caityelise99 @ilovekinny @ateezennie23 @wooahaelemons @purplelady85 @watamotee33@chidess97 @littlelostdemonofthelight @maliamaiden @burntarm1n @spooo00oky @eastleighsblog @momo-peachy @kitstar1117 @quartzpirate @sunnyhokyu @iwishiwasrichasfuck @theginger543210 @pandolinka @ddaeing @kpopnightingale @slid3er @kekdo-520 @puppyminnnie @sparklinghwa222 @calicanbeevil @itsvxlentine @atinism @loumin908 @smally97 @rxnexxi @acetruepunk @majesticbeluga @namjooncrabs @tashizxy @itstheghostofmypast @smilefordongil @teeziny @totallynotlyntv @kyeos4ng @prodsh00ky @acescavern

please don't be a silent reader !! reblog, comment, and like <3

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cameronspecial · 7 months

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Let Me In, Angel

Pairing: Frat!Rafe Cameron x Reader

Warnings: Having a Stomach Ache and Being on The Toilet

Pronouns: She/Her

Word Count: 0.7K

Summary: Y/N isn't feeling well and Rafe can't accept that she doesn't want him in the room.

Masterlist

Whatever Y/N ate has been wreaking havoc on her stomach. She came back home from shopping with Daisy and she had to make a mad dash to the bathroom. That was half an hour ago. She has been on and off the toilet the whole time and this is now her fourth go. Her posture is horrendous as she hunches over with her hand on her stomach. It is the only position that gives some sort of relief from the stabbing pain. It’s been a few minutes since anything has come out, but she is worried if she gets off the seat, it will start back up again. Tears start to well in Y/N’s eyes because she has never felt this type of ache before. Her period cramps are bad, yet manageable with ibuprofen. Something tells her the medicine isn’t going to help her at the moment.

Rafe pushes the unlocked door open with ease, even with his hands full. He flicks his head in greeting Dylan, who is watching TV. “Is Angel back from the mall yet?” he asks his frat brother. Dylan nods, “Yeah. Although, she’s been really quiet and holed up in your room the whole time. She hasn’t come down to get a snack or anything like she normally does.” “Perfect. I got her a chocolate chip muffin on my way home from class. Thanks for telling me. I’ll go check on her,” he states, heading upstairs to his room.

Y/N can hear the keypad of the door from inside the bathroom and squeezes her eyes shut. She leans over to lock the bathroom door. Rafe will insist on coming in when he finds out she is in there because they are the type of couple, who is comfortable with doing that; however, the smell she has created in the room is not one she wants to subject Rafe to. His knock reverberates around the room before she can hear the wiggle of the doorknob. “Angel, the door is locked. Can you open it so I can come in please?” Rafe calls out from the other side. She grimaces as another pang shoots through her abdomen, “I’m on the toilet, so no.” “Come on, Angel. It’s nothing I’ve never seen before. I want to tell you about my day,” he points out.

“Well, I want my privacy. So… no, you can’t come in.”

Usually, he would respect her wishes, except that he can hear the strain in her voice, which concerns him. Either she is hiding something or sh,” he orders, trying the door handle again. Y/Ne is hurt and he likes neither of those options. “Let me in, Angel sighs, “I can’t because.” “Why not?” he inquires. She rubs her stomach to soothe herself, “I’m scared if I open this door, you won’t love me anymore.”

“And why would you think that? Nothing you do could make that happen, Angel.”

“It’s just… My tummy is hurting a lot and the smell in the room right now is not very pleasant. I don’t want to subject you to that, so maybe wait until I’m done to tell me about your day. I really do want to hear about it, I promise.”

“Angel, if you are feeling sick, then I should be in there comforting you. I promise that whatever it is like in there will not make me stop loving you. Nothing could do that.”

“You promise?”

“Yes. Now, can you let me in please?”

Y/N exhales in relief and unlocks the door. He pushes the handle down, entering without a second thought. Embarrassment runs through her when she notices the small scrunch on his face. He is quick to wipe any emotion from his facial features as he rushes to her side. He squats near the toilet and takes her hand into his. “You don’t have to stay. I know this isn’t the most pleasant environment,” she whispers, wanting to die a little bit inside from the humiliation. He runs his thumb over her knuckles, “It’s not that bad. I live in a frat. I have smelt and seen worse. Don’t worry about it. You are in pain and you need me, so I’m going to be right here for as long as you need.” Globs of water stream down her face. “Thank you. I really don’t deserve you,” she mumbles, resting her forehead against his. Rafe kisses her hairline, “This is the least you deserve, Angel. And I’m going to make sure you are treated like a queen.”

Taglist: @winterrrnight @loves0phelia @thelomlisrafecameron @wickedlovely121 @thepatriarchykeychain @drewsmusee @starkowswife @maybankslover @forstarkey @loving-and-dreaming

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themultifandomgal · 10 months

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Hello can you please do one of Chris Argent we’re he is a overprotective and jealous husband and father to her wife y/n ( she is pregnant with their second child is a girl) and daughter Allison and I love your work seriously

Chris Argent- Not Much Of A Secret

Yes Chris and I had Allison young and yes we married young, but 18 years later we’re still married and now expected our second baby, another girl. We always wanted another baby, but unfortunately we had a few miscarriages. So we gave up trying. 1 drunken night though ended up with us being pregnant. Of course we are ecstatic even if we’re both much older now.

My family have always been hunters so of course I knew about the supernatural when we arrived at Beacon Hills. Now us and the wolves are allies, something I never thought would ever happen, but here we are. Although, Peter and I don’t get on. He likes to annoy me which always gets under Chris’ skin. So whenever we have meetings we try to stay away from one another.

I have been staying away from the pack since I found out I was pregnant due to the morning sickness, but now that’s finally passed I’m joining Chris at a meeting at the Hale Loft.

I walk into the loft holding Chris’ hand in mine. Chris guides me to a sit and we sit down. Annoyingly Peter sits down next to me smiling

“What do you want?” I roll my eyes

“I know your secret” I frown looking at him. He leans in and whispers “you’ve got 2 heart beats. Your pregnant. Is that why we haven’t seen your pretty face around here?”

“Yeah and so does every wolf in here, but they aren’t saying anything because they’re respecting mine and Chris’ privacy” i hiss back. Chris places his hand on my thigh trying to sooth me

“Feisty” Peter carries on smirking. I cross my arms and turn away from him to focus on Scott in front of us ready to talk about the newest threat.

An hour goes by and Chris’ hand never leaves my leg and I can tell he’s irritated by Peter sat next to me. He keeps glancing at me trying to get under my skin. We finish up with our meeting which causes a sigh of relief from Chris, but before we can leave Peter stands up and clears his throat

“So aren’t you going to make the announcement?”

“Do we really need to?” I reply “everyone knows here. Well except Lydia and Stiles, sorry”

“What’s going on?” Stiles asks confused

“Peter leave it. If they aren’t ready to talk to us then it’s not up to you to tell everyone. Give them some privacy” Derek scolds his uncle

“I’m lost” Lydia frowns

“She’s pregnant” Peter smirks

“Peter!” Derek yells. Peter walks towards me and and Chris, but Chris stands protectively in front of me

“She’s having a baby that’s why we haven’t seen her”

“What’s the problem with that? I don’t understand why your acting like it’s some big scandal?” I frown

“Nothing wrong. Just like winding you up” he laughs walking past us

“I don’t like him” Chris huffs

“Well I guess we should say congratulations” Lydia smiles

“Thank you” I smile back

“I’ll talk to him about raining it in” Derek says

“Thanks”

“Come on let’s go home. Allison are you coming come with us?”

“Actually, Scott and I are going on a date”

“Ok just be home at a decent time” I tell Allison who nods in response.

#teen wolf imagine #teen wolf imagines #teen wolf #chris argent x y/n #chris argent x oc #chris argent x reader #chris argent imagines #chris argent

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mykneeshurt · 1 year

Text

Strawberry

High honour Arthur Morgan x F!reader

Warnings - minors DNI, 18+, smut, fluff

A/N - Ayo I haven’t written anything in a while, I’m a bit rusty. Be kind Lmao not proof read

‘Can I get a bath please?’ The gruff voice echoed from the lobby of the small hotel you worked in. You knew that voice instantly. Arthur Morgan. The outlaw, your outlaw. He’d been coming to the hotel in Strawberry on and off for a few months, but his visits became more frequent once you’d started working.

You adjusted your bosom and tightened the corset which hugged your figure, flattering every curve. Straightening out your blue petticoat you quickly added a small amount of rouge to your lips. A present from your aunt who lived in Paris. Adding a small touch of jasmine oil to your neck, it was the final touch.

In the bath room you lit the fire and tidied up a little bit, you always wanted to make it perfect for him. He was so handsome, a strong jaw littered with stubble, sparkling blue eyes and sandy coloured hair. Considering he was an outlaw he was nothing but respectful to you. You watched as his eyes lingered on your lips, your collarbones, your neck. But he never made a pass at you.

You knocked on his bedroom door, your heart pounded in your chest. ‘Yeah?’ His voice boomed from behind the door. ‘Bath is ready’ you chirped, again smoothing out your petticoats. He swung the door open, his face softening instantly when he met your gaze. ‘There she is’ he cooed ‘how’ve you been darlin?’

That name.

It made you swoon every time. Every damn time.

‘I been fine, workin’ mostly. How bout you?’ You smiled up at him, his broad physique filled the doorway. He was dressed in all black, his sleeves rolled up showing off his golden muscular arms. ‘Ohhh you know. This n that, nothing too excitin’’ he drawled, the corner of his mouth twitched into a smirk.

‘Why don’t I believe you Mr Morgan. You been getting into fights again?’ You nodded at his gloved hands, he never wore gloves. Crossing your arms, you grinned up at the outlaw stood before you. He stayed silent. ‘Hmm. Baths ready’ you winked as you moved away from him.

Grabbing your arm he stopped you in your tracks ‘gimme five minutes darlin, I’ll see you in there.’ Nodding you offered him a warm smile before leaving to give him some privacy. Your heart thundered in your chest at his touch, his worn leather gloves felt smooth against your skin. The heat from his hands bled through searing your skin at the touch.

You busied yourself for a few minutes before returning to the bath room. Knocking on the door your sweet voice pierced the wood, ‘need any help in there?’ Biting your lip you eagerly waiting for his reply. ‘Come on in darlin.’ Butterflies swarmed in your stomach, you felt more nervous than normal.

Entering the room the warm glow from the fire shrouded Arthur as he led in the bronze tub. He looked insanely beautiful, his eyes met yours, instantly captivating you. The brilliant blue shone against the whites of his eyes. But you instantly noticed new wounds on his chest, his arms, his knuckles. Noticing your horrified expression he glanced at his body. ‘Ain’t nothing sweetheart, come here.’

Doing as you were told you went and sat on the small stool next to the bath. ‘Arthur what have you been up to?’ You whispered, as you lightly grazed your hand over his bicep. He gripped your hand and placed a tender kiss along your knuckles, ‘it ain’t nothin, I promise.’ You raised an eyebrow and pressed your lips together unimpressed.

It may have only been a few months of knowing him but you’d grown rather fond of him. Looking forward to his visits, his stories … and well just being with him. Even if it was just assisting him with his hygiene.

Noticing your glazed over expression Arthur placed his hand around your cheek, cupping your jaw so gently. The sudden warmth brought you back and you locked eyes with him, smiling softly into his touch. ‘Hi’ you whispered. ‘You better not be worrying about me, I don’t deserve that from yah.’

Pulling away instantly you slapped his hand ‘Arthur Morgan! Do not tell me what you’re worthy of, I will decide that. You’re worth so much more than you allow yourself to be’ you chided. A small blush crept along his cheeks at the reprimand, he didn’t think he was worthy of anything from you. He didn’t deserve your kindness.

‘Enough of that, tell me what you been up to’ you asked motioning him to give him his arm to wash. As you washed his muscular form he filled you in on his recent adventures, hunting bison with a gang mender called Charles, getting into a bar fight in Valentine. Which would explain the bruising. You laughed heartily at Arthur being called ‘pretty boy’. Oh that sound, the sound of your laughter filled Arthur with a warmth he missed so dear, it was addicting.

You rubbed your hands in his hair, lathering the sage shampoo lather amongst his sandy locks. His groans slightly as you dig your nails into his scalp, smiling to yourself you caught him roll his hips. The milky white water waving just slightly that you were sure you saw his cock hardening. Deciding to push this a little further you continued to massage his head, but this time bending down to nip at his ear.

‘Carry on doin that sweetheart and I might just have to have my way wit chu.’ His voice was thick, oozing with utter desire and want. Feeling a little more confident you dropped your hands to his neck, encasing his jaw within your palms. You nipped his ear again smiling as you whispered ‘maybe I want you to cowboy.’

A guttural growl left his chest as his chest heaved, ‘go to my room, I expect you be to naked by the time I get in there. Understood?’ He pulled your arms down over his chest, forcing your body to lay on his wet skin. Kissing your arm he let you go ‘go on woman.’

Needing no more direction you bounced into his room, quickly untying your shoes and stopping down to nothing but the skin you were born in. Lying down on his bed you draped yourself over the mattress. Your heart thundered in your chest as you tried to catch your breath. Hearing the bathroom door shut nearly sent you over the edge. You’d wanted this for so long and it was finally happening.

He entered the room wrapped in a towel, his wet hair stuck to his face framing it strand by strand. Your eyes widened at his body, B-road shoulders, pectorals harder than stone, a mass of hair on his chest which lead to a blonde happy trail. The towel sat dangerously low on his hips which swayed as he walked over to you. ‘Jesus woman. You’re beautiful.’

You felt heat rise within your body at the compliment, not used to receiving them from anyone. Arthur stood before you in all his glory, the subtle smell of sage invaded your senses only heightening your senses. He ran his thumb along your jaw, pulling your chin up to look at him. ‘Sure you want this?’ He asked, concern suddenly laced within the azure of his eyes. Nodding firmly you reached up to his towel, pulling it firmly away. ‘More than anything Arthur.’

With that he pushed you backward onto the bed, pinning your hands above your head. His hovered his lips just slightly above yours, his breath fanned ever so softly over your face. His eyes scanned your face, taking in every detail, committing it to memory, he want going to rush this. Slowly but surely he lowered his lips to yours, pulling you into a tender kiss. His lips were softer than you thought, the subtle gently tickled your skin as he began to move his jaw.

Tentatively he opened his jaw, opening yours with it. You groaned softly into his mouth as he swiped his tongue along yours. Pushing your tongue into his mouth he rolled his hips into yours, the kiss deepened as you both fought for dominance. Arms still pinned above your head he broke off the kiss and kissed along your neck to your ear. ‘Beautiful’ he whispered.

He nipped along your collar bones and began to kiss down your body, your breasts as he released your arms. Instantly they wrapped over his shoulders, as you scratched at his back. Hissing into your skin he hovered above your thighs, his breath teasing your weeping cunt. ‘Touch me … please’ you whined. Hips bucking and grinding into the bed beneath.

‘So beautiful when you beg. So perfect’ he drawled, his southern tongue heavy and sweet like honey. A laugh escaped your chest as you threw your head back, part disbelief, part annoyance. Without warning he threw your leg over his shoulder and swiped his tongue along your slit. A moan flew from the depths of your chest at the sudden intrusion. His tongue felt glossy and slick along your folds as he began to concentrate on your swollen clit.

‘Fuuuuuck Arthur’ you moaned, twisting your hands into the sheets. He hummed into you, the vibration permeating your skin adding a new sensation you’d never experienced before. As you looked down you saw he already had his eyes fixed on you. Drinking in every expression, every twitch, every moan that fell from your swollen lips. ‘Yes … feels so good’ you panted, toes pointed on his shoulders.

Wanting to push you further he slowly pushed a finger into you, stretching your hole with his thick finger. He built up a rhythm, alternating his finger and tongue, working your clit, focused on your pleasure. And your pleasure alone. When he felt you relax against him he added another finger. Soon enough he middle and ring finger we’re punishing your hole as he biting his face into your cunt. In between moans he muttered into you ‘taste so good darlin, so fuckin good.’

You reached down grabbing his hair ‘want you, please …’ you panted. Unable to take anymore, you needed him and needed him now. Pulling away from your pussy he lowly licked his lips, savouring every morsel of you.

Crawling back up your body he kissed you again, this time allowing you to cup his face. As he lined himself up he placed a gentle kiss on your forehead. Pushing in his thick cock stretched you open, causing you both to gasp, mouths agape. ‘Mmmm good girl’ he purred as he began to thrust into you. You pulled him into your neck, nails desecrating his back from pure pleasure and lust. Red tendrils adorned his back, a display of your pleasure and deviance.

He panted against your neck, sweat began to build on both your bodies as he picked up the pace. ‘Feel so good sweetheart’ he said as he kissed and nipped at your neck. The room filled with the sound of skin on skin, the sweet sound of your wet pussy swallowing him whole.

Pulling out he motioned for you to get on top, sliding over his lap you sank down onto his weeping cock. Arthur threw his head back as you swallowed him whole once again. ‘That’s it, good girl, takin me so well.’ You started to roll your hips, grinding yourself along his pubic bone. He gripped your hips as he watched you come undone on top of him. Neck arched, head thrown back, as you succumbed to the intense pleasure.

You mumbled incoherent words as your high began to build. Your abdomen tightening and coiling. ‘Look at chu, cock drunk already. Doin so good sweetheart.’ You barely registered his voice over the static that now filled your ears. His thumb found your clit and he moved it in small circles, urging you to cum on his cock. As he felt you begin to clench around him he pulled you down to him. Resting your head on his he kissed your lips, still toying with your clit.

The cool snapped as your orgasm took over you, eyes snapped shut as you moaned into his mouth. He inhaled it like the finest opium, ‘keep goin’ … that’s it … I got chu.’ Brows furrowed together you desperately tried to catch your breath.

As you pulled back your high finally settling you were greeted with a warm smile. ‘There she is. Ready?’ He asked bearing his own orgasm. You nodded eagerly. ‘Where?’

‘My mouth.’

‘You’re gonna kill me woman.’

Climbing off him you knelt on the floor, eager and waiting. Arthur stood over you, pumping his thick cock with his hand. Groaning and whimpering softly, deciding to hello him out you took his cock in your mouth. Instantly pushing him to the back of your throat. He let out a choke of disbelief. ‘Goddamn sweetheart.’ You worked your mouth around his cock, savouring his taste on your tongue.

He pushed gently on the back of your head ‘I’m gonna cum sweetheart … damn … god’ he stuttered through his moans. Until thick ropes of cum laced your mouth and dripped down the back of your throat. He mopped up your saliva with his thumb before ducking his thumb.

After going you to your feet you placed a gentle kiss on your lips, pulling you into him. ‘How’d I get so lucky?’ He asked, stroking your hair ‘the most perfect beautiful woman wantin this ugly old bastard.’ Rolling your eyes you slapped him again, just like you did in the bath. ‘Arthur! Stop that. We’ve known each other months now, your smart, funny, kind. You mean so much to me.’

You brushed his hair out of his face, urging him to look at you. ‘I been sweet on you for a while now, if you ain’t noticed. I don’t want no one else.’ He traced his hands along your back, contemplating your words. ‘You mean it?’

‘Course I do Arthur. You’re perfect to me.’

He pressed his nose against yours before gently kissing it ‘you’re perfect to me too sweetheart. You make me real happy.’

‘Good. Make sure you come back and see me?’ You asked looking up at him with doe like eyes. ‘Darlin I don’t think I ever wanna leave yah. Why don’t you come with me? You’d make the happiest outlaw there ever was.’

Your mouth fell open, you’d only ever known Strawberry, ever since your daddy kicked you out. But an adventure may be good, and an adventure with Arthur? Even better. Smiling up at him you cupped his cheeks, tears lining the brim of your eyes. ‘Sure Arthur. I’d love that.’

——

@johnnytavish @deadbranch @havingnonamesucks

#rdr2 arthur #arthur morgan rdr2 #rdr2 #arthur morgan smut #arthur morgan x reader #arthur morgan x you #arthur morgan #rdr2 fanfic

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pocket-lad · 2 months

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CH 1- A Few Important Details

She faced down Human Beans. She faced down dinosaurs. What crazy thing could the world possibly throw at Adelaide next? Try another borrower and an adventure far beyond the walls.

A sequel to Only a Couple Days & Growing Pains. This work is going to be quite a bit different than previous stories, mostly because it's not directly based on a movie. I hope you enjoy!!

“Oh my God,” Adelaide breathed. She was really staring at a real-life borrower. She hadn’t seen anyone her size in over a decade!

Years seemed to pass in the silence between them, but the new person broke it first. “Come on!” she whispered urgently. “Are you crazy? There’s three whole Beans in that room!”

Adelaide sputtered. Where could she even start?

“What were you doing in there?”

“I, uh…I thought I saw…a mouse,” Adelaide half-lied.

The woman was pretty. She had wildly curly black hair and dark skin. Her big eyes were the color of chocolate, and she stood only slightly taller than Adelaide. “Well, they won’t be asleep forever,” she said. “What’s your name?”

“Adelaide.”

“Adelaide, I’m Ollie.”

“Do you live here?” Duh. Of course she lives here.

“Yeah, and I’ve never seen you around before. Where’d you even come from?” Ollie’s tone of voice wasn’t exactly suspicious. Hesitant, maybe.

“I just got here today.” It wasn’t technically a lie.

“I assume you plan on staying, then?”

“I’m not sure,” Adelaide admitted. It didn’t escape her mind that Ian and Sarah were getting serious. She always assumed it would either end badly or Sarah would move to Texas. She never considered that Ian would want to move here, but now that she was forced to think about it, she wasn’t so sure.

“Well, we have a place for you if you do.”

“Oh, thanks!” God, Adelaide forgot what it was like to be a borrower around other borrowers. They always helped those in need and always welcomed others with open doors, no questions asked. They had to stick together in such a large world.

“We should hurry while they’re still asleep. I’ll show you where the best food is, but really, you can find stuff pretty much anywhere. This Bean is super messy.”

Adelaide laughed, remembering the way she pointed out the cluttered apartment straight to Sarah’s face. “Let’s go.” Ollie said, and she roughly guided Adelaide toward her thread that hung from the kitchen counter.

Adelaide blinked as all of the information sunk in. Ollie was a borrower. She lived in Sarah’s house. She was in the middle of borrowing. She didn’t know that the humans were friendly and she didn’t know that Adelaide regularly interacted with them. Adelaide decided she wanted to keep it that way for the time being, because honestly, she missed this. She missed the camaraderie, she even missed the thrill a little bit. Maybe it was selfish, but she played along anyway.

“You go up first,” Ollie said.

“I’m probably gonna be pretty slow,” Adelaide admitted, holding up her mess of a hand.

“Holy shit, what happened?!”

“I fell on it when Ia- when a Bean…” She closed her mouth. Less is more .

“Oh my God, that must have been terrible. I’m so sorry…” Ollie looked pitifully at Adelaide’s hand. Morbid curiosity nearly made her ask for details, but she respected her privacy, and now was not the time. “You should still go first. I don’t want to leave you stranded on the floor. Better to stick together.”

Guilt crept up on Adelaide. She wasn’t exactly lying, but whatever she was doing, it didn’t feel good. She felt like she was betraying Ollie’s trust. Ollie didn’t know her, and yet she was risking her life for her.

“Okay,” she said. She prepared herself to start climbing, but the sound of something massive shifting around stopped her in her tracks. Somebody was awake. This was about to go downhill very fast.

Ollie heard it too. “Change of plans,” she said, immediately dislodging her hook and coiling it around her arm.

Footsteps rumbled in the distance, but they were rapidly approaching. It may have been a vast distance for the borrowers to traverse, but they both knew it would take a Bean mere seconds to cross from the couch to the kitchen. They had no time. Adelaide would be surprised if they made it out of this one without being noticed.

Ollie took off, but looked back to see Adelaide rooted in place. She assumed the new borrower was in shock, or was simply too scared to move. She couldn’t imagine what happened to make a Bean crush her hand, but it couldn’t have been anything good. Regardless, they had to keep moving. Ollie sprinted back to grab Adelaide’s good hand and dragged her along.

***

Ian’s eyes cracked open at the sound of voices…Voices? Plural?

Shaking the grogginess off, he stretched and slowly inched toward the kitchen. He would have heard somebody come in, right? And the voice sounded too quiet to be human, which meant…

***

They weren’t going to make it. Ollie stopped and pulled out her knife. “Go without me. Just around the corner, there’s a hole that leads into the wall. Wait for me there, and if I don’t make it back…well, I’ll make it back.” She gave Adelaide a cocky smile, but her nervous eyes betrayed her.

Adelaide still didn’t move. She couldn’t leave Ollie to deal with this on her own, especially when it was almost definitely Ian headed their way.

“Go, stupid!” Ollie yelled, shoving Adelaide as hard as she could.

Adelaide, unprepared, fell to the ground.

***

Ian had just looked over the edge of the table in time to see two people, both around three inches tall, standing down on the floor. One was Adelaide. The other had just shoved Adelaide - hard - and brandished a knife.

Ian quickly bent down and snatched this new borrower up. With his other hand, he gently scooped Adelaide off the floor.

***

“Nonononononono,” Adelaide mumbled. This was going so wrong so fast. What sealed the deal was Ian’s inexplicable and frankly idiotic decision to reach for them both.

She braced herself like she usually did, but had no time to warn Ollie. She couldn’t even see what he was doing to Ollie from her vantage point, but she felt her own body slide into his warm palm and could only hope he was being as gentle with her.

Adelaide fought against Ian on principle. Obviously it was useless. She flew through the air and could only focus on keeping her hand from getting hurt worse.

When the movement ended, she found herself on the kitchen table. Looking around, no sign of Ollie. Then she looked up. Her jaw dropped.

Ollie was stuck in Ian’s fist, fighting for her life. Ian had taken her knife and set it down on the table beside Adelaide, and he knew to keep the new borrower angled away so she couldn’t bite him.

Adelaide didn’t think about how, if for some reason, Ian wanted to hurt another borrower, he knew exactly how to do so because of his experience with her. She thought back to all the times she explicitly told him what not to do, told him all the things that made her uncomfortable, not thinking for even a second that Ian would use this information to take advantage of a smaller being. This was her fault.

“Put her down!” Adelaide yelled, running up to Ian’s other hand that rested on the table. She kicked at it repeatedly to knock some sense into him.

“What’s going on?” he asked defensively.

“Ian, she’s scared! Put her down! Now!”

“She pushed you!”

“She was saving me from you!”

Ian realized his mistake. In his attempt to protect his friend, he may have just scarred another borrower for life. Slowly, he set the girl down.

As soon as Ian’s hand opened, Ollie leapt away, scooping up her knife and pointing it up at him. “Adelaide, get behind me.” It sounded like she heard none of their conversation, too occupied with escaping.

Adelaide blinked but did as she was told. Ian regarded them both with utter confusion plastered across his giant face. He wasn’t often confused, and he certainly didn’t like it.

“Let us go,” Ollie demanded. The confidence in her voice was impressive. Only Adelaide could hear the slight falter in it.

“Um…okay,” Ian said, but he didn’t move. Adelaide knew this meant he was going to stay hands off and just observe, let them do whatever they wanted, but since he still sat there, it looked like he was still holding them captive. For all Ollie knew, he would just grab them when they attempted to escape.

“Yeah, let us go!” Adelaide echoed in support. She guessed she was keeping up the charade, then. She just hoped Ian would play along.

He didn’t say anything, but his brow furrowed. Adelaide sent him a look that said to just go with it and that she’d explain later. She knew her face was small and distant to him and therefore hard to read, but she was pretty sure he got the point.

Ollie didn’t take her eyes off Ian, but she whispered to Adelaide. “He doesn’t live here. I think he’s partnered with the Bean who does live here, which means we’ve probably got more incoming. Watch your back.”

Adelaide checked behind her, but as far as she could tell, Sarah and Kelly were still fast asleep.

It also turned out that Ian did not get her point. In fact, he interpreted it all wrong.

“Ahh, I’m uh…I’m going to get you!” he said half-heartedly, wiggling his fingers and smirking at how ridiculous his attempt at being the evil Bean sounded.

Ollie was more than confused. Was this some kind of game? His words indicated mal intent, but he didn’t sound very sincere.

Adelaide closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She looked Ian in the eye and shook her head, hoping that maybe he would get it this time.

Ian corrected himself. “Oh, um…what’s your name?” he asked the new borrower, but his tone was asking Adelaide if that was the right thing to say.

Ollie flinched when he looked at her. “I’m warning you,” she said, ignoring his question and raising her knife a little higher.

“That’s a - that’s a weird name…Warning me? For what?” This new borrower was obviously sacred, but she obviously wasn't in any danger, either. It was hard not to tease her, and it was even harder to keep a straight face.

“I’ll stab you.” Ollie said seriously. Her hand started to shake. Adelaide felt horrible.

“I see why you guys get along,” Ian chuckled. They were both so unnecessarily violent.

“No!” Adelaide blurted.

Ollie whipped her head back to Adelaide, a sudden spark of betrayal piling on top of her confusion, but she didn’t want to keep her attention off the Bean too long.

“What’d you want me to do?” Ian asked Adelaide, too impatient to play this game. He wanted to know what was going on. He wanted to know who this new person was. He hated being in the dark.

Ollie continued to look back and forth between them. She was suddenly very suspicious of Adelaide, so she repeatedly moved her knife from Ian to Adelaide and back. She wasn’t taking any chances.

“Do not point that at her,” Ian warned. He sat up a bit straighter, ready to protect his friend.

Ollie's knife dipped.

“Ian, don’t,” Adelaide said harshly. He was not going to threaten Ollie. She was just defending herself.

“I’m serious,” he said.

“So am I!”

“What’s going on?” Ollie yelled. The quick rise and fall of her chest indicated that a panic attack was fast approaching.

“Okay,” Adelaide held out her hands placatingly and slowly approached the trembling borrower. “Ollie, you’re safe. This is Ian. He’s my friend.”

“Bullshit,” Ollie spat.

“He is. I know you don’t believe me. I wouldn’t believe myself, either, if I hadn’t spent the past couple years with him.”

As Adelaide approached, Ollie backed up. Her eyes darted around, trying to find some sense of reality to latch onto. A borrower and a Bean? Friends? She backed toward the edge of the table, and Ian instinctively held his hand out behind her, just in case she fell.

Ollie sensed the massive presence and turned around. She screamed at the sight of a towering, enormous hand looming above and stumbled backwards towards Adelaide. That hand was going to grab her. It was going to take her away. Or it would crush her. She’d never see her family again.

Adelaide grabbed the woman’s shoulders, which made her jump. Ollie turned around again , feeling backed into a corner. There was nowhere to go.

“What? You’re - you’re his pet or something? You lure people out of the walls so Beans can snatch them up? Is that it?”

“God, no!” Adelaide said, sick even at the idea of such a thing. She realized that she wasn’t going to get anywhere with Ian hovering. “Ian, can you go literally anywhere else right now?”

Ian looked like he wanted to protest, but just shrugged and pushed his chair out from the table.

Ollie jumped and gripped her knife tighter at the sound of the chair scraping against the floor.

Ian sauntered over to the corner of the kitchen and leaned back against the counter with his arms crossed, watching the interaction from afar. Adelaide rolled her eyes. This wasn’t what she wanted, but it was as good as she was going to get.

Ollie watched with wide eyes. Adelaide just told the Bean what to do! And he listened!

Adelaide set her knife down on the table and kicked it away, showing she meant no harm. She hoped that wouldn’t backfire.

“Ollie, I never lied to you. I just…I left out some pretty important details,” she laughed. Ollie did not reciprocate. “I’m not his pet. We’re friends. His name is Ian-” (Ian waved) “-and he would never hurt you-”

“Then let me go,” Ollie interrupted. It seemed as though none of Adelaide’s words made it through to her. Hell, she could barely look at her, too distracted by the looming Bean.

“Okay,” Adelaide sighed. She wasn’t going to stop the borrower from leaving, but she was severely disappointed.

Ollie secured her hook on the table and turned to climb down, eyes never leaving Ian. If Adelaide was telling the truth, then the Bean wouldn’t stop her. Hopefully.

Adelaide dug her hook out as well. “Let me walk you to-”

“No,” Ollie said forcefully. She couldn’t deal with this right now. She needed time to think. And she certainly wasn’t going to let this borrower know where her home was, where her family was. Not when said borrower was allied with a Bean.

Adelaide froze in her tracks as her heart sank. She blew it. The first time she’d seen a borrower in over a decade and she blew it. All she could do was stand there and watch Ollie’s progress. She didn’t move even after the woman disappeared into the walls, using the entrance Adelaide happened upon earlier.

Small quakes on the surface of the table and the sound of shifting fabric signaled Ian’s approach. Only when he laid a finger on her shoulder did she move, shrugging him off and turning toward him. “Back off!” she shouted.

Ian was taken aback by the outburst. “Della-”

Adelaide ignored him, marching toward the edge of the table. She collected her knife, readied her hook, and started to climb down.

“Hey, maybe you shouldn’t-” Ian started, but was cut off by a very angry look from Adelaide, daring him to finish that sentence. Maybe you shouldn’t climb with your broken hand. He sighed. Both of them knew this was a bad idea, she knew this was a bad idea, which was what irritated him so much. She was going to hurt herself because she didn’t want him telling her what to do.

Adelaide tried to take deep breaths as she lowered herself down. She squeezed the thread with her legs and used her right hand to stabilize herself. Then, very slowly, eased the pressure of her legs, letting herself slide in a semi-controlled manner to the ground.

Silently, she coiled up her hook and shoved it back in her bag. She stomped over to the hole she watched Ollie disappear into. Adelaide’s intentions weren’t super clear even to herself, but she justified it as wanting cover. Or wanting a sense of familiarity. Something like that. Definitely not following Ollie.

“Della,” Ian called after her again. “Della!”

“What?!” Adelaide exploded, whipping around. She wavered a little when she had to look up at a skyscraper of a person, but she held her ground. Why were Bean’s heads always just a little higher than she thought? It was as if they grew a foot on purpose each time, just to intimidate her.

“Calm down, let’s talk about this… Uh, forgive me for being curious but there’s a whole - a whole new person on the floor sticking a, um, a knife at you. Perhaps maybe-”

Adelaide cut him off. “I want to be alone.”

Ian paused. “What?”

Oh. That wasn’t a clarifying ‘what’. He legitimately did not hear her, which felt like a real kick in the head. As if she didn’t already feel small, standing on the ground no taller than his ankles. “I said I want to be alone.”

Ian bit his tongue. “Okay.”

Adelaide took off toward the walls, running as fast as she could. Ian didn’t move the whole time, but she could feel his eyes tracking her. As soon as she made it inside, she collapsed into a seated position, catching her breath. God, Ian could be so thick sometimes!

Adelaide sat there for an indeterminate amount of time. She was right - she really did need the comfort of the walls. It had only been a couple days, but it felt like years had passed since she was in the walls back home. While these ones were not the same, they would suffice. As long as she had cover over her head and darkness to conceal herself, she would be fine. And there was the added bonus of cleanliness, thanks to the borrower(s?) who already lived there.

Adelaide said she wanted to wander the walls. Well, there was no time like the present. She hoisted herself up, dusted herself off, and began her journey into the unknown.

#jurassic park #ian malcolm #g/t #giant/tiny #jurassic park g/t #gt #size difference

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jungkookslipring · 1 year

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what abt a seonghwa fic when y/n (fem) breaks down one day when everything is seemingly fine abt abuse she had from her mom when she was akid.

y/n's really independent and admirable and hides her feelings underneath a warm friendly exterior but no-one knows what's underneath it.

idk if this is too intense, but i kind of feel like it..

haha love you

I LOVE THIS! Thank you so much for the request!

Pairings: Seonghwa x Reader

Relationship: platonic or romantic

Genre: hurt/comfort

Warnings: mentions of verbal and psychological abuse, crying, mentions of eating disorder but no graphic description

Mother Knows Best

Mother knows best, right? Even when she was very protective of you growing up and claimed to be a mama bear and 10 times out of 10 always acted on it, it made up for the things she’d say to you, right?Every time she said you’d look prettier without all those piercings, every time she’d comment how your body wasn’t VS material, every time she’d gaslight you and say you weren’t depressed you were just having a bad day, or “it could be worse”, she knew best, right? Your parents could do no wrong, no matter what they said was said with a purpose right? What they said, especially what she said was okay, right? They were allowed to say negative things cause they were your parents and that fine, right? Well it sure took you long enough to realize it was far from fine. It took one memory for you to break down in your bedroom. You were scrolling through Pinterest looking at constellation piercings, trying to decide which piercing you’d like to add to your collection. Maybe a double helix? Or a tragus? Or go for the more simple route and do a third lobe? There were just so many options at the end of your fingertips. You found a combo of jewelry you loved, and when you went to hit “pin”, the words invaded your brain.

“Why would you do that?”

“There is no reason for you to get those”

“That’s so ghetto”

“You’d look prettier without those piercings”

You lost it. Your vision blurred and your heart began to race, the fear from your childhood when you’d cry over something and your mom would comment

“Of course you’re crying”.

It was all too much. When you heard footsteps you threw a hand over your mouth and squeezed your eyes shut, imaging your mom storming down the hallway to yell at you, to stop crying, and to suck it up. What you didn’t expect was a dip at the end of your bed and a soft

“Hey, hey sweetie, what’s wrong?”

You opened up your eyes and saw Seonghwa, looking at you with a concerned facial expression. You shook your head, you’ve never wanted him to see you like this.

“Let’s try to catch our breath honey okay? We’ll take deep breaths together, you and me, yeah?” he asked oh so kindly. He wasn’t yelling at you, wasn’t telling you to suck it up, he was gently helping you calm your breathing. Just the mere thought of this new way of calming down actually existed was enough for your breathing to level out within maybe 30 seconds.

“Was there something or someone bothering you?” He asked as he put a hand on your knee. You looked down, worried that if you express your feelings, you’ll be shut down. Seonghwa took his hand and slowly tilted your chin up to look him in the eyes.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, I respect your privacy. I just want you to know I’m here, okay?” he said so sincerely. Your lip wobbled and before you knew it you were hiding your face in his shoulder, weeping as you held the back of his sweatshirt If he was startled he didn’t show it as he wrapped his arms around you, resting his cheek on your head. He’s never seen you so sad before, let alone shed a tear. It hurt his heart hearing you hiccup with every sob.

“My sweet girl…whatever it is, I’ll be there. I can help. I can help fix it,” he whispered. You shook your head. How? How can you fix childhood trauma.

“I-I don’t think it’s s-something that can b-be fixed” you whisper tearfully. He held you tighter and started stroking your hair. It was his silent way of saying

'I'm here, whether you want to tell me or not, I'm here'.

You let out a shaky sigh and found only a small bit of courage to tell him. You told him everything: the verbal and psychological abuse from your mother as a child, the way that abuse followed into your teens and young adult years, how you were paranoid over everything you did cause you knew she’d have an opinion on it, the fear of speaking up, the challenge of expressing your feelings, and the shame of feeling sad. Everything you let out was word vomit, and the strong confident girl that Seonghwa met was replaced with a shy, quiet and scared girl that was weeping from years of trauma. But Seonghwa didn’t care. This side of you he had never seen before and even though it broke his heart, he was relieved that you were letting go of the pressure that built up inside of you for so long that you kept trapped in a box refusing to open it.

“…so…you know I guess that’s what did it…I couldn’t take it anymore…but I’m really sorry I didn’t want you to see me like this-“ you rambled before Seonghwa oh so gently, in the nicest way possible, cut you off by pulling you further into his hold.

“Shhh shhh shhh. My y/n, you don’t need to apologize over this type of thing, bubs, this isn’t your fault, none of this is your fault,” he said with his voice only slightly shaky. He pulled back a little to cup your cheek.

“I don’t want you to ever feel like you can’t talk to me sweetheart, and I don’t want you to feel afraid to show your emotions. Your feelings are valid and no one can tell you otherwise cause it’s your body, not theirs. And I’m so so sorry your mother caused this,” Seonghwa said sadly. He genuinely felt so sorry for you.

“It’s okay…I mean…I know it’s not okay but don’t feel bad, I’ll get over it eventually,” you say shrugging. Seonghwa had sadness in his eyes as he took your hand into his.

"You are loved. You are so so loved sweetheart. You have a family who loves you, even if its just me and the rest of the seven crackheads that live in this household," he chuckled as you let out a wet chuckle. You loved them all so much, you really did. This conversation wasn't going to change the past, but it was going to help you move forward, knowing that you had the best support system, even if they weren't blood.

#ateez x reader #ateez #ateezedit #ateez angst #ateez fluff #seonghwa x reader #park seonghwa #ateez x atiny #ateez hurt/comfort #hurt/comfort

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adelaidedrubman · 1 year

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wip wednesday....... LOSERS’ edition.

(that’s every day with my characters but) i decided to kick off wip wednesday, and use it as an excuse to belatedly post the sentences written for the losers of the wip poll from a while back. in part because i lost the post with who wanted to be tagged in the losers post yeah. so, decided to share as a wip day buffet to the usual suspects instead (on that note, this is always a no pressure tag with no expectation you have to read in order to tag me back, but an extra bonus no pressure disclaimer please nobody feel obligated to read every excerpt even if you want to read one.)

sending tags TO my beloveds @henbased @florbelles @unholymilf @belorage @socially-awkward-skeleton @corvosattano @inafieldofdaisies @direwombat @roofgeese @shallow-gravy @derelictheretic @strangefable @8bitpizzacoupons @stacispratt @orionlancasterr @v0idbuggy @jackiesarch @nuclearstorms @strafethesesinners @firstaidspray @clicheantagonist @simplegenius042 @miyabilicious @ladyofedens-blog @nightbloodbix @poetikat @voidika @ishwaris @confidentandgood @ri-a-rose @cassietrn @wrathfulrook @schoute @bluemojave @afarcryfrommymain @trench-rot @blissfulalchemist @shellibisshe @roberthouses @indorilnerevarine (+ open invitation + psa i am moving to an opt-in tag list soon so if you would like to keep/start being tagged please like or comment here.)

without further ado, the wips that just couldn’t rise to meet the #HANKSWEEP. these are in descending order of number of votes, so longer excerpts towards the top. credit to @derelictheretic for the text dividers i used here to break it up + make it visually easier to read your excerpt of choice.

HOOK, LINE, AND SINKER: 8 VOTES. the john/jestiny fake dating post getting dumped by their respective polycules au. here’s 8 sentences i wrote for chapter three following the poll, which i’m hoping to be able to post in full sometime this week.

“You crashed my boat.” “No shit!” she spat back, butting her forehead against his. “You shouldn’t have been fucking distracting me!” His brow twitched, his body tensing further. “You crashed. My. Boat!” “And did you get some kinda fuckin’ head injury during it or something?!” she barked. “The boat crashed —” “You crashed —” “— you have sufficiently fuckin’ established that.” She shoved her hand harder against his collarbone, digging her nails into the mass of his shoulder. “So how about instead of sitting around goin’ off like a broken record you get the fuck off me and help me shove this thing back into the water? I’ll even give you the honor of driving the piece of junk back to the marina, since you have such a minnow up your ass about me doing it.”

FIELD NOTES: 8 VOTES. working title for jenna’s canon, set pre-reaping. i’ve had trouble getting this one started beyond stray excerpts because i want to format it in a style that’s new for me, epistolary storytelling through research notes, emails, etc. mixed with traditional narration. on that note, i played fast and loose with tallying the sentences here due to the first part being in segmented shorthand, so it’s technically over count.

8:14 PM - Luggage Inventory, Convent Living Quarters. -Small but visible damage to zipper on inner pocket of main suitcase. Bending of teeth bent at approx. two inches from base. Zips with minimal effort, contents of pocket accounted for. -Approx. 10ml fluid missing from water bottle clipped to handle, visual estimate. Check for leaks/transfer remaining fluid for lab analysis to be added to agenda. -Slight tears to lining at A gentle series of knocks drew Jenna from her journal, eyes settling on the peeling eggshell white paint and warped wood of the exterior door opposite the foot of her bunk. She flicked her eyes to the open doorway at her left to confirm that none of the women in the adjoining cabin appeared to have intentions of crossing the invisible barrier of privacy given to her as a ‘special guest’ with a ‘room all to herself’ and answering the knock themselves before climbing down from her bed to cross the short length of the room. She left the journal open with cover flat atop the mattress and pen tucked into its gutter. It would just as easily read as an accounting of damage done by the airline on the flight over, were John to keep up the established pattern of indirect but relentless restless prying. Jenna admonished herself for the intellectual laziness of making assumptions as she peered through the crack in the door she opened, finding it wasn’t John who stood there at all. “I just wanted to see that you were settling in alright,” Faith greeted with a soft smile, dropping the hand that had knocked to fold into the one hovering at her waist, lacing the fingers together with palms pointed towards the ground. She seemed careful not to touch the frame of the door, to do anything to tangibly intrude into Jenna’s space, but rocked forward on the balls of her feet to lean just past the threshold, in subtle elicitation of an invitation to enter.

INFERNO: 3 VOTES. a simple lil role reversal au, baptist!jestiny/deputy!john.

He was sure if there were any onlookers watching as he stepped gently and deliberately along the slick mud of the riverbank to weave himself into the throngs of faithful, they would think he looked less like a Deputy County Attorney approaching a potential key witness, and more like a moth drawn to a flame. All the better, he thought. He knew how to carefully craft a misleading image, too.

AMERICA’S SWEETHEART: 3 VOTES. i never really planned to write anything in this verse or make it a cohesive story, but if i were going to i would want to do it exclusively through the pov of people just trying to do their job being forced to interact with johnjess. so here’s me playing with that, and with trying to use present tense for something besides the opossum fic. also i did lines instead of sentences because there were lots of short ones oops.

“They were national news. Were,” Penelope corrects with a hiss of derision. “When they were tried. I’m not driving four hours to Hope County every time the court has to deny the habeas corpus petition of the month! I mean, for the love of god, Stuart — I was a Peabody nominee.” He shrugs as he folds in the temples of his glasses, carefully placing them on the desk beside his tea. “Was,” he grants flatly. “A nominee. You didn’t win.” The stiff leather of his chair creaks in complaint beneath his shifting weight as he pauses a beat, tacking on, “The paper will be generous with reimbursing travel expenses, of course. There’s a new little resort that popped up at one of the marinas I’ve heard is actually quite nice. Has a spa and everything.”

MINE’S BIGGER: 2 VOTES. a verse vague john/jestiny silly little oneshot that is nsfw adjacent (excerpt fully sfw).

John swatted away the hand attempting to puncture the delicate silk lapel of his robe with the point of the badge, knocking the bronze star down to clatter against the hardwood. “It doesn’t exactly require high-caliber deductive reasoning to see how desperately you’re trying to deflect right now,” he huffed, pulling up the neck of his robe with a protective grip.

JOIN ME IN THE SKY: 1 VOTE. a silly little john/jestiny airline crew au, john is a pilot and jestiny is a flight attendant. (ft. suffering crew members nick rye and mary may fairgrave.)

“What I’m doing is my duty as the Captain of this crew to see that its members are in line and following orders,” he bit out, shoving past Nick to take his place in front of the door to the absent flight attendant’s room. “Kindly see to it that you’re not the next subordinate in need of attention.”

…seriously? who the fuck was the one person who voted for wildfire? turn on your location i just wanna talk. but here. ““chapter 19””” or whatever

It had never been her particular habit, but as she watched billowing black smoke rise from the short, torn and twisted metal remnants of the frame of the silo with the heat from its explosion flaring hot on her cheeks, Jestiny thought she could understand now why some people enjoyed smoking after sex.

#also if the sentence count is wrong places i didn’t mention blame the sentence counter site i used not me.#wip #fic: hook‚ line‚ and sinker #v: field notes #(new tag added. maybe that will shame me into writing it.)#v: inferno #v: america’s sweetheart #v: join me in the sky #fic: wildfire

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sergeantsporks · 2 years

Text

Dadrius Week Chapter 3: Daily Life

“So… Darius offered to let me stay with him.”

Hunter watched Ms. Noceda carefully, waiting for her reaction.

She put down her kitchen knife, blinking. “Oh. The abomination head, right?”

Hunter nodded.

“And… how do you feel about the idea?”

Hunter took a deep breath. “Well, logistically speaking, it would be the best option. It’s closer to Hexside, so I wouldn’t have to cross dimensions every day to get to school. And he doesn’t already have a couple of kids, so it would be less of a hassle for him.”

“Hunter, you’re not a hassle. And I don’t want you to think you have to live with him just to somehow make life easier for me.”

Hunter nodded a couple of times to that. “Okay. But just. Yes. As far as the logical choice goes, Darius seems to be a good plan.”

“But how do you feel about it?”

Hunter leaned against the counter. “I don’t know. We didn’t get along in the coven, not for a while. And maybe that’s just because of how things were there, because it’s been a lot better more recently, but… what if we get along more now because we don’t see each other as often? And we’re always somewhere else. I’m just worried that… if we’re in each other’s space again… we’ll start to get on each other’s nerves.”

Ms. Noceda ‘hm’ed thoughtfully. “What if you had a weekend visit, to test?”

“A what?”

“It’s something some adoption agencies do. Before parents make a decision on an adoption, the kid goes out to their home for a weekend, to test the waters. See how they fit into the household. You and Darius could do something similar. Go over to his home for a weekend, maybe longer if you’re still not sure, test and see how you like it, how he likes it. See if it’s a good fit. If so, then maybe you move in with him. If not, well, I’m happy to have you here as long as you want, Hunter.”

“A weekend visit,” Hunter echoed softly. “Yeah. Yeah, let’s try it.”

Xxx

A weekend visit.

Slow and cautious.

Not the worst idea.

Darius led Hunter up the stairs to a room that had once been a guest bedroom—well, it technically still was, until he made a decision. “I already put all your clothes in the closet. There’s a bathroom attached to your room. My room is just down the hall. You can go in if you need something, but otherwise, please respect my privacy. The rest of the house is fair game.” Darius tapped a small statue that was sitting on the counter. “If you do move in, you can give back any of the decorations you don’t want, the space will be yours.”

Hunter nodded, setting his bag down on the bed. His fingers twisted around each other, and he glanced around the room awkwardly. “Sooooo…”

“I’ll… leave you to unpack?” Darius suggested, backing out of the room. Titan, this was awkward. He traipsed back down the stairs to see Eberwolf curled up on his couch. He was getting dirt on the cushions, but Darius almost didn’t care. He nudged the demon. “Thank goodness you’re here. You’re used to hosting litters of baby creatures. What do you do to make things not stilted?”

Eber shrugged and stretched. “Feed them,” he signed, “Make them a nest.”

“He has a nest—well—a bed. Food is a good. I can do food.”

“Give them time and space to explore their surroundings,” Eber added, “Everything is strange and new. Let them figure out their new environment.”

Darius nodded. “Hunter?” he called.

Hunter’s head poked down the stairs. “Yes?”

“Eber and I are going to the store to pick up some things for dinner. We’ll be back in an hour.”

“I don’t want to go shopping,” Eber complained, “They think I’m your pet.”

“You’re coming anyway,” Darius told him, picking him up and setting him up on his usual shoulder perch. “Bye, Hunter.”

“Bye.”

Xxx

Hunter waited for Darius to disappear down the street, then set an alarm for forty-five minutes and thumped down the stairs, leaving his bag half unpacked on the bed. He wandered through the house, noting points of entry. Windows. Doors. There was the front door, of course. And then another door in the kitchen that led to the back of the house.

Explore the yard later.

Kitchen, living room, laundry room. Normal enough. Hunter hopped up to sit on the washer, reading the instruction manual for it and the dryer. Bathroom. Hunter picked up the soap bottle. It was similar to the one in his room’s bathroom, a foaming scented soap.

Where does he get these?

Come to think of it, where did Darius get anything? Hunter knew he liked the finer things, and he liked to be comfortable, but he didn’t know anything about where you found that stuff.

Hunter set the soap back down and climbed back up the stairs. Guest room—although this one was significantly less in the tastes of the rest of the house, with plants in the windowsill, a range of combs and brushes next to fur shampoos and scale care kits in the bathroom, and a pet bed in the corner. Where Eber slept if he stayed over, if Hunter had to guess. Hunter opened the door to a room with bookshelves and a massive desk.

Darius has an office?

He spotted a couple of papers with the seal of the abomination coven and winced. Those were old. He picked them up anyway. Growth charts on the number of young witches choosing the abomination track. There was a typewriter set up, words like little black ants marching across the page. Hunter had known Darius had written a book, but he’d never read it.

There it was, on the shelf, though.

Abomination Creation.

Hunter put the book back and left the office, carefully shutting the door behind him. Another guest room. A linen closet. Another bathroom. And…

Hunter’s hand hovered over Darius’ bedroom door.

He said not to go in there unless I needed something.

Still.

Why would he say that?

Before he could stop himself, Hunter twisted the knob, shoving open the door and then leaping back.

No traps. Not on the door, at least.

Just a quick peek.

Hunter poked his head in the door, and something gold glinted in the light from the window, shining directly into his eyes. Hunter looked behind himself to check for Darius, then went inside, picking up the golden object from its place on a little table, two candles burning next to it.

It was an emperor’s coven cloak pin. It was shiny and bright, but Hunter could see russet stains in the cracks and crevices of the sigil.

His cloak pin.

There was a picture on the little table, a photograph in a golden frame. A younger Darius and a man in a golden mask.

Darius looks… happy.

Hunter set the cloak pin back down and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind him.

He’s not hiding anything from you.

He just wants some privacy.

Hunter went back to his room, unpacking the rest of his few belongings and putting them in drawers. His toothbrush went to the bathroom. The frog plushie Luz had helped him rescue from the keep went on the bed.

The room looked sparse, compared to his room in the keep, or even the room at the Noceda house.

If I stay, I could fill it.

If.

Xxx

Darius kicked off his shoes at the door, setting the bags of groceries down on the kitchen counter. “What do you think the odds he actually stayed out of my room are?”

“Next to none,” Eber signed, then hopped up on the counter and started emptying the bags.

“Mmmm, that’s what I thought.”

“Do you still have that creepy shrine in there?”

Darius flushed. “It is a memorial, and it is not creepy.”

“You know how my family coped with the death of a loved one?”

“Ugh—oh, titan, Eberwolf, not this again, you will put me off my dinner.”

“We ate their corpse.”

“I am not eating a corpse.”

Eber picked up the package of griffin meat off the counter and waved it at him.

“That isn’t the same. Get down from there.”

Eber hissed at Darius’ hand as he reached for the tiny demon, then hopped off of the counter on his own, proceeding back to Darius’ couch.

Darius opened the meat, cutting it into smaller pieces and putting them in a bowl. He mixed a sweet and sour cooking sauce in another bowl, then tossed it all together in a pan, moving the pieces around in the sizzling broth. An abomination tendril snatched up a package of presliced vegetables, tossing them in with the meat.

“Oh, hey, Eberwolf,” Hunter’s voice said from the living room, “Are you staying for—”

Eberwolf hissed, and Hunter yelped. Darius poked his head into the living room just in time to see Hunter backpedaling away from the couch, Eber puffed up and baring his teeth.

“Eber, play nice. You don’t need the whole couch.”

Eber stretched his paws all the way out while laying on the middle cushion, effectively making the whole couch unsittable.

“You are a horrendous houseguest,” Darius told him.

Hunter followed him back to the kitchen. Darius continued to toss the meat and vegetables, abomination tendrils snaking out and opening cabinets that had plates and glasses.

“What’re you making?”

“Stir fry. I’ll put together a salad in a minute. Did you finish unpacking?”

“Yes.” Hunter shifted just a little closer. “It smells good.”

“Thank you. Almost done. Please go tell Eber that if he wants dinner, he has to wash his paws first.”

Eberwolf ate like a ravenous animal. It was almost enough to put Darius off of his own dinner, but at least he was used to it.

No, it was the way Hunter ate that worried him. He watched to make sure Darius ate a bite first. Then he ate slowly, testing the food.

Then he devoured it in three seconds flat.

“You two are going to choke,” Darius commented.

“Can’t choke,” Eber signed to him, “Have a separate breathing tube from my nose to lungs, just in case.”

“Of course you do.” Darius nudged the bowl of stir fry towards Hunter. “You can have seconds if you’re hungry.”

“I’m not.”

“Really? Could have fooled me the way you scarfed that down. Camila’s feeding you, isn’t she?”

Hunter flushed. “Of course she is.” His shoulders hunched, and he shrank back into himself. “It was delicious. Thank you.”

Think it out.

Locate the source.

He was well fed in the coven, all the scouts were, they had to be kept in top physical shape.

The food in the mess halls wasn’t anything special, but it wasn’t disgusting, either.

Darius remembered his own mentor tending to ‘dine and dash’ as he called it, inhaling his food in between missions and guard duty and patrols. Darius had been guilty himself of eating meals in his office on particularly busy days as head of a coven.

There it is.

Darius leaned back, rolling a fork between his fingers. “It’s alright. You don’t have to go anywhere. You can just enjoy the food. You too, Eber, goodness.”

Eber licked sauce off of his fingers. “Got to go home, my ratworm delivered a litter.” He wrinkled his nose at Darius. “Good luck.”

Then he was gone, bounding out the door.

Darius stabbed at a vegetable, pointing his fork at Hunter, who’d settled back into a state of mostly-relaxed. “So. How many times exactly has someone tried to poison your dinner?”

Hunter blinked at him. “What?”

“You checked to make sure I ate first, probably because you were worried about being poisoned. Not that it would matter, if I was going to poison you, I’d simply use a poison I had the antidote to, in order to fool you. Checking to make sure I eat first is the oldest trick in the book.” Darius took another bite, then swallowed, shaking his head at Hunter’s frozen stare. “I’m speaking in hypotheticals, Little Prince, don’t worry, I haven’t poisoned your food, and I don’t intend to. Promise. But how often has that happened to you?”

Hunter’s shoulders hunched up again. “Once or twice.”

“Often enough that you check.”

“Sent me to the hospital,” Hunter muttered, “Missed a lot of work.”

Darius shook his head. At least the way he was acting cagey about it showed he didn’t think it was normal anymore. Hooray for progress. “No more worrying about that. You’re safe here. All unpacked?”

Hunter nodded.

“Did you have enough time to look around?”

“Yyyes.” Hunter’s eyes flicked from side to side. Oh, yes. He’d definitely gone into Darius’ room. And for the first time, Eber’s words nettled at Darius.

Is the memorial creepy to him?

Since the whole… thing.

Too late to worry about it now.

Darius finished the last of the food on his plate, then set his fork down and pushed his chair back with a sigh. “So.”

“So,” Hunter repeated.

“Today has been… awkward. For both of us, I think.”

Hunter nodded.

“It was bound to be that way. I know this was supposed to be a test on how well you clicked in the household. But I hope you won’t base your decision on one day.”

“There’s… always tomorrow?” Hunter suggested.

Darius nodded, gathering up plates and utensils. “There’s always tomorrow.”

#toh #dadrius week 2022 #the owl house #day 3: daily life #dadrius #darius deamonne #toh fanfiction #my writing #toh hunter

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frostandflamesfanfic · 2 years

Text

Take Me Home for Christmas (College!Steve Harrington x Reader)

Take Me Home for Christmas (Rated G)

Pairing: CollegeAU!Steve Harrington x Reader (gender neutral)

Word Count: 2.2k+ (it's a longer one!)

Warnings: References to uncomfortable family relationships(?), suggestive content, fluffy cuteness

Summary: Inspired by the song, "Take Me Home for Christmas" by Dan + Shay; It's yours and Steve's first winter break as college students. When you have to go back to your separate homes for the holidays, Steve doesn't want to say goodbye just yet. Little did you know what other surprises would be in store...

Baby, when December comes

When it's gettin' cold outside

And your bags are packed

I don't wanna say goodbye

“Remind me why you have to go again?” Your boyfriend asked you from his position beside you. He was supposed to be helping to pick which clothes to pack for your family’s annual holiday celebration. Keywords being “supposed to.” Instead of stuffing fabric into a suitcase, the two of you were cuddled on your twin-sized bed. Your head was resting against your boyfriend’s chest, which proved to be a more-than-adequate pillow.

“Steve,” you hummed. “We’ve been over this. I have to go, at least for a little bit. Then I’ll catch a flight out to Hawkins after Christmas so you can introduce me to all your children.”

“They’re not my children,” he was quick to correct, although he had a ghost of a smile against his lips. When you first met Steve and heard about his found family back in Hawkins, Indiana, it was impossible to think those kids were anything but his. The way he practically lit up talking about Dustin’s latest invention or Will’s new comic idea made you want to kiss him senseless (and you had on several occasions).

To anyone else, the topic of having and wanting a big family would be a major red flag on the first date. But it felt natural for you and Steve. The two of you bonded over your shared desire for a family in the future. Like Steve, you were an only child who grew up with a relatively strained relationship with your family. However, unlike your boyfriend, it seemed to be easier to perfect and enjoy your I’m-here-but-not nods and less-than-interested hums of acknowledgement as you got older. Who knew that being part of a big extended family meant acting in the world’s most realistic play?

It was simultaneously your favorite and least favorite time of year. On one hand, you were able to catch up with family that you actually liked being around and haven’t seen in forever. On the other hand…were those family members and questions that increasingly encroached closer and closer to overly personal territory. At least this year, when Grandma Cecile badgered you about your dating life, you could finally tell her you have a boyfriend. You already knew most of the time would be spent talking about your boyfriend just because you’d miss him so much.

You and Steve met early on in the school year. Robin Buckley, Steve’s best friend, was assigned to be your roommate for the semester. Now, Robin was amazing, but you had to admit she could be a bit…spacey at times. When classes started, Steve had visited your dorm no less than three times in the first week because Robin had left her notebook in the classroom or wanted her sweatshirt (which was actually Steve’s) back but forgot to grab it before the big game. Sure, you had hit it off with the dark haired freshman, flirting every now and again, but you quickly put a stop to it. With how close the small-town hometown duo appeared to be, you had automatically assumed they were a couple and tried to respect their privacy.

Robin was quick to clear up the confusion, though, when she noticed how awkward you appeared to be around Steve. “You know the dingus and I are, like, totally platonic, right?” she asked you during one of your late night conversations. “Like, platonic with a capital P.”

“Oh,” you replied. “I guess I just assumed that—“

“Oh, yeah, no, totally! It’s not uncommon for us to get that question. I mean, we are really close! But that’s just because we’ve been through a lot together— and I mean a whole lot of shit.” There was a brief moment of silence. “You know he’s, like, totally head over heels for you…right?”

“…what?!”

“You didn’t know?! God, wow, you both really are helpless…or is it hopeless? Probably both, but you know, if you both can’t tell that you love each other…it’s probably more of the latter.”

A few weeks later, the two of you (finally, according to Robin) stopped skirting around your obvious (again, according to Robin) attractions to the other and went out to see a movie the film club was showing. So what if Steve didn’t completely understand the premise of Empire Strikes Back? The way he smiled and nodded while you ranted about certain aspects of the plot made you feel like the most special person in the world. The two of you were inseparable the remainder of the semester, much to Robin’s mock dismay. You couldn’t help it. Every day you spent with Steve made life so much better, from the simplest of smiles to the gentlest of kisses against your cheek.

“But why can’t you just come home with me first?” Steve’s voice broke through your thoughts.

“Because Christmas is in two weeks,” you explained with a sigh as you sat up to ultimately take on your original task.

Your boyfriend groaned dramatically. He lifted an arm up to cover his eyes. “Two weeks?! I won’t see you for two whole weeks!”

“Oh relax, lover boy,” you reached over to sleepily pat at his abdomen. “Just two weeks without me, then you have me all to yourself all through to the start of the next semester.”

Steve groaned again. “We just finished finals,” he whined. “Don’t remind me there’s more!!”

“God, I’m not going to miss your whining.”

“Hey!!”

When I see the trees light up

When they hang the mistletoe

“Are you sure you have everything?” Steve asked, hand on his own suitcase handle. He glanced behind you at the suitcase, carry-on, and backpack waiting by the front door for the taxi. “Pajamas, dress, hairdryer?”

You couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped your lips. “Yes, mom,” you teased. “Everything is packed and within a reasonable limit of the TSA’s guidelines.”

Steve nodded absentmindedly, eyes transfixed on something else now above your head. “Good, good,” he acknowledged. “But, uh, I meant…are you sure you’re not forgetting anything?”

Brows furrowed, you tilted your head and followed his gaze in confusion. Everything clicked into place the second you recognized a familiar white-berried plant placed in the doorframe. “Steve Harrington,” you mumbled, a smile gracing your features, “how long has that been up there?”

“Long enough for me to wonder when you were going to notice it,” he whispered back before he leaned down to press his lips to yours. He tasted like that of chocolate and cinnamon from the farewell breakfast you two had shared that morning at your favorite nearby cafe. Your hand reached up to cradle his neck, currently covered by a soft brown and white flannel scarf to shield him from the cold winter air, which prompted him to pull you closer by the waist. Neither of you wanted to let go, but you knew it had to happen.

“Call me as soon as you land tonight,” you whispered against his lips, eyes locked onto his own half-lidded ones.

Steve nodded and searched for your lips once more to kiss you softly. “Promise,” he whispered. “You’ll be the first to know.”

“‘M gunna miss you so much. You better be ready for the best hug of your life in Hawkins after Christmas, Harrington.”

The boy before you gave a cheeky grin. “Hopefully it’s more than just a hug, babe.”

“You’re disgusting,” you gasped and swatted at his arm playfully.

“Hey, you’re the one that put us in the gutter now, babe,” Steve attempted to defend himself. “I just meant kisses.” He puckered his lips and closed his eyes for effect.

A honk sounded from behind you, signaling the arrival of your cab. Heaving another sigh, you pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. “I have to go.”

Steve nodded. “I know,” he said. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”

You nodded, appreciating his respect for your not wanting to say goodbye. The two of you had both done your share of those and it made things feel much more finite than they actually were. “Miss you already!” you exclaimed as you started to load your luggage into the taxi.

And I'm by the fire

I don't wanna be alone

“Hi, hello!!” you exclaimed as you ran up to the counter. Checking your watch, you still had….ten minutes to spare. “I’m here to check in for my flight? Seat 3A?”

You had had the worst experience with airport security once you arrived. First, you were selected at “random” for a security pat down, then were subjected to watching your suitcase being torn apart due to a metallic zipper on one of the dresses you had brought for the festivities. Not only that, but you had ended up at the wrong gate and thought you had missed your flight thanks to a less-than-helpful attendant. This trip was off to a fantastic start. All you wanted to do was plop down into your cheap economy seat, lean back that half an inch recline that was provided as part of the “luxuries” afforded to you through your ticket, and pass out for the first hour of the trip.

“Oh, yes,” the clerk smiled gently at you as you lifted the ticket into view. She flipped through her little booklet on the desk and raised her eyebrows slightly. “Well isn’t this a treat? It looks like you’ve been upgraded to business class. Your new seat number is 45C.” With another friendly smile, she printed out your new ticket and held it out. “Enjoy the flight and happy holidays!”

“Uh…yeah, you too,” you responded politely as you began to make your way into the boarding area.

Upgrade? Was it possible? Did someone at the airport feel bad about your travels so far and take pity on you? Either way, you weren’t going to complain. You had heard the rumor of moist towelettes and additional footwell space available in business class. Now you’d be able to check it out for yourself. As you strolled through the aisles of seats, you felt a renewed burst of energy once you left economy seating. You were finally on your way after hours of security and stress.

After a few minutes of walking and mumbling the number to yourself, you finally found your seat. It was much more spacious than where you would have been sitting and you spoke a silent prayer up to the travel gods for helping you. You placed your carry-on and backpack up in the overhead compartment, making sure to take out your walkman before plopping down in the seat. You took a deep breath, closing your eyes for a moment in an attempt to get some peace. There was a small gust of air against your face and the sound of fabric squishing leather nearby. When you opened your eyes and turned your head to meet your seat partner, your breath caught in your throat.

“Hey, travel buddy,” Steve flashed you a toothy smile. “Think you can squeeze in room for one more at Christmas?”

“What are you doing here?!” you exclaimed in a barely hushed tone. “You’re supposed to be on a flight to Hawkins with Robin tonight!”

“Yeah, well you see, babe,” your boyfriend began to explain. “I decided to take a little detour.”

You crossed your arms across your chest. “What kind of detour?”

“The….two-and-a-half week long kind?” came the sheepish response.

“Steve!! You can’t- why?” you sputtered. “What about your family? What about going back to Hawkins?!”

“Look, it’s okay,” Steve soothed. ”I already called your parents and asked about it. I’ll stay through Christmas and then we can celebrate with Dustin and the other little shits when we fly back on the 27th. Your mom said it was fine. In fact, she said everyone was pretty happy to hear I was coming…once they found out who I am, I mean.”

You cringed at the explanation. So your family already knew. Your mom knew, your dad knew, which probably meant your grandmother knew. And once Grandma Cecile knew…..everyone knew. “Oh God,” you groaned, hands reaching up to cover your face.

“Babe?” Steve’s voice was concerned now. “Babe, what’s wrong? Did I do something? Are you mad?”

“No!” You replied way too quickly. “I’m not mad and nothing’s wrong per say. I just…may not have explained to my family that we’re….” You made weird gestures with your hands in an attempt to select the right words.

“Dating?” Steve supplied, causing you to nod.

“Yeah,” you admitted. “It’s just- every year I’m badgering about my love life or what I plan to do. And this year, I- well I finally have something I can be happy about sharing. I got into a good college, made some great friends….started dating my boyfriend.”

Steve grinned. “Boyfriend, huh?”

You felt the bright flush crawl up your neck and rest itself against your cheeks. “Yeah,” you admitted quietly, “boyfriend. Is that- is that okay?”

Steve’s response was a gentle press of his lips to yours. Yes, it said. That would be more than okay. You allowed yourself to relax against his hold and return the affectionate gesture. It was a feeling you thought you had needed to deprive yourself of for the next few weeks. Even though it was a shock, you were glad Steve was coming to spend the holidays with you.

You just hoped that your family wouldn’t scare him away.

All of your traditions

I wanna know 'em all

You'll check every box off of my list

If you take me home for Christmas

======

Author's Note: So sorry today's fic got out so late -- I meant to post it sooner, but due to life getting in the way, it just didn't end up happening. This is one of my favorite stories I've written for the event so far...I'm really hoping that the timing of it's publication doesn't make it flop :(

If you liked this story and want to see more like it, make sure to leave a comment and reblog! Likes are very much appreciated, but it's the other two interactions that really help me out as a writer. It spreads the word about my work AND gives my brain cells the happiness they need to be motivated to keep writing! To make sure you don't miss out on all things Stevemas and ficmas for this year, maybe consider giving my blog a cheeky follow. With Tumblr eating posts in tags, it might help keep you in the loop as to when the next fic will be posted, as well as other crazy happenings in the life of El!

Until next time, my little sparks <3

Taglist: @bakerstreethound

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crystillyzed · 1 year

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matchup trade with @mysteriawrites

a/n: i keep seeing matchups on every fandom i read yume fics for and i wanted to give it a try. and astral gave me a chance so thank you!! we already exchanged each other info in dms since tumblr doesnt like long asks but i’ll do a lil summary (but it wont include everything!!). who knows, maybe i’ll do matchups in the future

matchup request:

this is a nijien matchup! astral is an african-american cis woman. she’s an infj, and she has a mother-like personality to her friends. she’s kind, empathetic, and protective. plus she’s pretty sassy and easygoing around people she trusts. but sometimes she’s the therapist friend but unintentionally. although, she is a nerd at heart. astral likes anime music, pop music, rpgs, mmos, and rhythm games. but she also likes fantasy and sci-fi genres where the impossible is possible. her love language for giving is acts of service, gifting, and physical touch (depending on the person’s comfort). as for receiving, her love language is words of affirmation and physical touch (if she’s comfortable with them).

your match is doppio dropscythe!

it sounds a bit strange, but you and doppio would be a great match together. yeah, he has his moments from time to time which worries you or confuses you like always, but he means well! when you’re in a situation where you don’t feel like you should be here or if you’re not feeling well due to your anxiety or migraines, piochan will do his best to get you out by doing what he does best — cooking up a doppio-style monologue.

you also could be pretty funny together. even though you get confused by whatever the hell he’s cooking, you get to be his sous chef — his assistant to intensify his bits. you throw in little quips or ideas that would spice up the monologue and the joke he’s putting together.

when he’s not busy, you would have stay at home dates where you watch you or him play an rpg or rhythm game, or you’d play co-op if the game has it! sometimes when you can’t see each other in person, he’ll invite you to login an mmo you both play together as a date. since you’d work together so well, you and piochan would synchronize so well in dungeons and fights since you’ve got each other’s backs.

despite his chunni behavior, he’s quite caring and not that extroverted. he’s actually an introvert but he’s able to adapt when needed. some say he’s like a brother but some may say he’s like a father. you and pio take care of each other so well that sometimes you’d get mistaken to be a young married couple, but you can’t help it! you both want each other to be as happy as possible. of course, you two will have your fights, but you both prevail in the end since you both handle them in a mature manner.

you make sure he doesn’t overwork himself with his duties from the academy so you help him tidy up any belongings or handle some of his chores whenever he’s away, and he makes sure you’re eating well by keeping in mind what foods you don’t like the smell and/or texture of. he even respects your privacy since you can’t always be with someone. he recognizes that you need time for yourself, so he lets you have it while checking in on you every once in a while. he’d even call you or leave notes to let you know how proud he is of you and how much he cares about you. sometimes you’d find little doodles or jokes he wrote for you in case you needed a pick-me-up after a long day.

#nijisanji #nijisanji en #xsoleil #doppio dropscythe #doppio dropscythe x reader #xsoleil x reader #nijisanji x reader #— a simple dream // writing #— the one in your dreams // matchup #idk if thats the tag i’ll use for matchups lmao

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starkstruck27 · 1 year

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TW: very brief mentions of suicide, and of course mentions of child abuse. Enjoy but please read with caution my friends.

Billy didn’t know if the urge to cry was coming from the fact that his dad had pulled him back in again, like a moth to a flame, or the fact that the man himself was lying in front of him dying.

Either way, the urge was there, and Billy took a little bit of satisfaction from the fact that he was able to take deep breaths to steady himself and his dad couldn’t. He was dying of lung cancer, and didn’t have long, maybe a month left, at most. Most of the doctors estimated that he’d be gone within a week or two, though, so Billy finally made himself build up the courage to book himself a flight from Ocean City to Indianapolis and actually get on the plane. It’d been 15 years, and it still didn’t feel like nearly enough time had passed since he last saw his father. The bruises that’d been throbbing that day in 1988 were long gone, but as Billy stepped into the hospital room, his footsteps keeping time with the heart monitor and breathing machine, he could still feel them all over his body.

“I’ll let you have some privacy,” the nurse who’d escorted him back told him, smiling nicely and shutting the door as she left. Billy didn’t even thank her, because he wasn’t sure if he should. Even with his father confined to a hospital bed and too weak to move even if he wanted to, he couldn’t help but feel a little unsafe in a room alone with him. Still, he twisted the ring on his left hand, took a few deep breaths like his therapist had taught him, and approached his father.

“Hey, dad,” he said, still fiddling with his ring. He remembered the inscription inside of it and the man who wore the matching one, and that helped him relax a little.

“Billy?” His dad wheezed, his voice only coming out on a whisper. It was another thing that Billy took satisfaction in, the fact that, no matter how hard he tried, his dad would never be able to yell at him anymore.

“Yeah, it’s me. Not used to seeing me without a red mark on my face, huh?” Billy said, a sharp edge to his voice. He knew the man was dying and he knew that the comment was backhanded, but he didn’t care. He didn’t owe his dad anything, and especially not respect. Still, it made the knife in his heart twist a little when a look of guilty recognition came over his father’s face.

“I know it doesn’t mean much now,” his dad said, “But I’m sorry for everything I ever did to you.”

Billy couldn’t help but laugh at how ridiculous that statement was.

“No you’re not,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “And anyway, it wouldn’t even matter if you were, because I didn’t come here for that. I didn’t come here to forgive you or for your half-assed apologies so you could die with a clean conscience. I came here for me, because I deserve to be able to live knowing that at least if my father died thinking I was a disappointment, he was going to have all the facts straight, so shut the fuck up and listen.”

Billy’s heart was racing as he stood up a little straighter, squaring his shoulders to give off the illusion of confidence even if he wasn’t entirely sure he was feeling it.

“First of all, I’ve been doing great for the past 15 years, so thanks for asking,” he said, flexing his fingers. “As soon as I got out of Hawkins, I went to college. I applied to UCLA, Penn State, West Virginia and the University of Phoenix. I ended up getting into all of them, so I went to UCLA and got a degree in Marine Biology. I graduated with a Masters degree at 26, and I started working on my doctorate a year or so ago. I got a great job with amazing colleagues, and I’m making more money in a month than you would make in a year.

“I got therapy as soon as I started making enough to afford it, and I’m not completely healed yet, no one ever is, but I’m a lot better off than I used to be. I was able to figure out why I was so angry all the time and why I couldn’t ever let anyone else in even if I wanted to, and eventually I learned how to stop being that way. Which, I’m glad I did, because if I hadn’t, I would’ve ruined one of the best things that ever happened to me before it even truly got started.

“When I left Hawkins, I didn’t leave alone. My best friend in the entire world came with me, because he also wanted to get out from under his father’s thumb. Steve and I moved to California and lived out of a motel for a few weeks until he could get a job and save enough for us to afford a place. I had just started college and things were rough at first, but I was able to start therapy when Steve and I started fighting more and more. I was so afraid he was going to leave me behind and go off on his own, but he saw that I was putting forth an effort, so he stuck by my side. And every day I’m more grateful that he did, because once I was able to see my therapist for about a year, I had improved enough to finally be honest with myself and with him, and I came clean when he took me out to celebrate one year of being on our own.

“He asked how therapy was going over dinner and I told him that I was doing good, and that I was finally gonna stop lying, and I told him that I was gay. And he just looked at me with these big soft eyes and a sympathetic little smile and told me that he was glad I told him, but he had already kind of figured that out. Then he told me that he didn’t care at all and that it didn’t change the way he viewed me at all, because he cared about me no matter what. And I knew he would probably react like that, because his best friend Robin is gay, and he’s known since the summer of ‘85, and they’re still practically attached at the hip to this day, but I was still worried. Then I told him that there was more, and I said that I had been falling in love with him from the first moment I met him, and it took me a while to be able to admit that to even myself, but now I had, and I wanted him to know, too.

“And when he told me he felt the same way, I nearly fell out of my chair. I could’ve sworn he was straight and I told him as much, but he just shrugged and said that he didn’t love me for what kind of body I had, he loved me for the person I was and was continuing to become. And I cried right there in front of the entire restaurant, because I never thought that anyone could love me just because I’m me.”

Billy paused and took a breath. He was still close to crying, and his voice was getting wavery and thick, but he cleared it and took a deep breath, getting ready to continue on. He looked at his father for a moment before he did, and was met with a face of stone. He had no expression on whatsoever, so Billy just let out the breath he was holding and kept going.

“It was another year and a half of just being together before he finally asked me to marry him. It was on Halloween, because that was the first time we met 6 years prior, at a stupid Halloween party my junior year. I remembered that party, because the first time I met him, he was with his girlfriend at the time, and this asshole we had both been friends with at one point wanted me to go over and brag to him about being the new keg king, but as soon as I saw his face, I stopped dead in my tracks and I could barely speak. It was kind of awkward, because I couldn’t think of anything to say to him and when I was silent for a few seconds, he ran off after his girlfriend who had slipped away and that was that. And then later that evening, his girlfriend broke up with him, and he was sulking outside, so I finally got up the nerve to go talk to him. It wasn’t right away, but we became friends, and we’ve stuck together ever since. He told me that that’s why he picked that night to propose to me, and before he could even finish asking the question, I was already crying and saying yes.

“I kissed him and he put the ring on my finger, but not before he showed me the inscription he had gotten on the inside of it. It said ‘Yeah I wanna marry you, don’t cream your pants’, because that’d been one of our inside jokes from the beginning, and he thought it would make me laugh. And it did, but not before I cried over it, because even though it was a stupid line, just the fact that he thought that much about it was the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for me. We got married a few months later in a discreet little church somewhere in LA, and it was one of the best days of my life. My friends from college were there, Robin was Steve’s best man, and she’d even managed to get the word out to a few people back in Hawkins that we were getting married and surprised us by having them in the audience when we walked into the church.

“Remember that road trip Max went on with her best friend El in 1990? Well, that’s where she was, a little hole-in-the-wall church in Southern California, watching her former babysitter and her older brother tie the knot. When I saw her in the front row in her light blue pant-suit, her hair up in a perfect ballerina bun on her head and smiling like the sun, I burst into tears. She looked so grown up, and I couldn’t even believe she was there. We hadn’t done a huge reception afterwards, but we did have a little something, and Steve and I were only really going to do the couple’s dance at first because his mom wasn’t going to make it and I didn’t have anyone to dance with either, but we did end up doing them. He danced with Robin and I danced with Max, and then we danced together, and neither one of us could keep it together. I can still remember the way Steve bawled when Max and all her friends made him take a picture with them, because he hadn’t seen them in a few years and when they were all gathered around him, he said he felt like no time had passed, even though it clearly had. Then Max and El pulled me into the picture, and Steve kissed me, and the kids all made faces like they were grossed out about it. That picture is still framed in our living room.”

Billy could hear his own voice getting more squeaky and uneven as he began to cry, but he made himself hold it together. He had to get through this, because goddammit, after everything his father had put him through, he was going to know damn well that it didn’t defeat Billy. He was going to have to listen to every good thing that’d happened to him and he was going to have to face up to the fact that no matter how hard he’d tried, he couldn’t break Billy down, at least not permanently.

“We were married for two years before Steve started to bring up the topic of starting a family. I had just gotten my Bachelor’s degree and was getting ready to start my Masters, but we had decided to get a little drunk as a celebration and he asked me if I ever thought about maybe having kids. I knew he always wanted kids, but I wasn’t so sure. I told him I used to want kids more than anything when I was little and Mom was still around, but once she left, I wasn’t so sure, so we decided to table the discussion for now and talk again when we were sober. He brought it up again at dinner two nights later, and told me he’d always dreamed of having six kids, three girls, three boys, and that he still wanted that, but only if I did, too. And I could never say no to him, especially not when he was giving me that look, so I said that maybe we could just start with one and see how it went. He lit up like a firefly when I said that, and immediately started looking into the different options.

“It was hard, though. Most adoption agencies didn’t want to deal with us because we were both men, and finding a good surrogate took a lot of money that we just didn’t have at that point. It was killing me, both because Steve was so disappointed and because now that we’d finally talked and figured things out, I wanted a kid as much as he did. But then, just when all hope seemed lost, Robin paid us a visit and said that she might be able to help us. She was going to college at that point, too, and she knew a girl from one of her classes that was pregnant, but was thinking about terminating the pregnancy because she just didn’t want kids, she never had. She just wanted a career and to marry her boyfriend, and he felt the same, so she was weighing her options and thought aborting was the best way to go.

“But then Robin stepped in and asked if she would consider having the baby and putting it up for adoption, and the girl, her name was Lindsay, said that if she were sure her baby would go to a good home she might consider it, but the foster care and adoption systems weren’t great and she didn’t want her baby to go through that. Robin told her about us and how we wanted to start a family, and Lindsay and her boyfriend agreed to meet us and see what they thought. They ended up liking us, and Lindsay said that she’d help us out. Steve and I were both over the moon about it, and over the next few months, we did everything we could to get ready for it. And finally, on a warm April afternoon, I got out of class to find Steve waiting for me, telling me that Lindsay had checked into the hospital a half hour before and that she was waiting for us.

“It didn’t take too terribly long, only maybe five hours, but it felt like years had passed as we sat holding hands in the waiting room chairs. Neither of us moved from the moment they shooed us out of the delivery room until a nurse came out and told us that Lindsay was resting and our baby was being cleaned up and weighed. She told us on the way back to Lindsay’s room that the baby was perfectly healthy so far, and that they’d need to run some tests and give her her vaccines, but that she was okay so far. Steve was just relieved that she was okay, but then I turned to him and smiled and said, ‘did you hear what she said?’ And he didn’t get it at first, but then I said ‘she said she. We have a daughter,’ and Steve just stared at me. Then he started crying, and I had to hold him before we could go in and see Lindsay because he was crying so hard.

“When he finally calmed down, we went inside and Lindsay hugged us both and we shook hands with her boyfriend and we talked for a little until a nurse came in wheeling a little bassinette. She asked who wanted to hold her first and Lindsay looked at us, and I let Steve hold her first because he’d wanted this for a lot longer than I had. He held her and he looked at her and he kissed her head and I swear I’ve never before felt anything like I had in that moment, because a minute ago I was a new father, but it was like an abstract concept, and then when I looked at Steve holding our daughter, looking at her like she’d hung the sun, the moon and every one of the stars, it was like a switch was flipped, and suddenly I was willing to jump in front of a train or off a cliff or get eaten by a shark if it meant the two of them, but especially my little girl, would be safe and happy.

“And then, after a few minutes, Steve looked at me, and he asked if I wanted to hold her. And suddenly, I was stiff as a board and spacing out, because all that love and devotion I’d been feeling a second before were overshadowed and drowned out by this crippling, paralyzing fear. From what Steve’s told me, I went white as a sheet and started shaking like a leaf in the wind, and he said that all the life drained out of my eyes as I clenched my fists. He had to hand our baby to Lindsay for a minute, because he was worried about me, and he said he had to practically carry me to the little bathroom attached to the room so we could talk privately. He said in all that time, he didn’t even see me blink. I don’t remember much of this, I only remember him flicking water from the sink in my face to get me to come back to him, and he asked what’d happened.

“And then I remember I collapsed to the floor, and I didn’t cry, but I still shook like I’d gotten electrocuted. And when he sat down next to me and held my hand, I finally told him that it hadn’t quite felt real until that moment. But then he had tried to hand me the baby, and when I saw her tiny, fragile body and remembered that I was the one who was going to have to take care of her and keep her safe from then on, I just froze. I told him that I was afraid of her, which was stupid, right? Because she can’t do anything to me, she can barely even open her eyes yet, but yet she terrified me more than anything else in the world, because if she ends up fucked up, that’s our fault, and while I didn’t think Steve would be able to fuck her up, I definitely could. And he said that he didn’t believe that, and he said ‘you’re not going to turn out like your father’. And I swear to God, I almost socked him right in the face for that.

“But I didn’t, because somehow, without me saying a single word, he knew exactly why I was so fucking scared of someone who only weighed five and a half pounds. And once he said it, I was able to realize that that was what I was so scared of. I didn’t want to hold her because I was afraid I would get the urge to hit her for no reason. I was afraid I would start getting itchy because I couldn’t scream at her with other people in the room. I was afraid she would start to cry, and when I couldn’t get her under control, I’d just leave her for someone else to deal with, or even just to her own devices. I was afraid that if I would hold her and know that she’s mine, I would stop loving her and instead of seeing her as a blessing, I’d see her as a burden, and I wouldn’t want to take care of her. And I was horrified with myself for thinking that I would turn into you, but was even more horrified at the thought that I wouldn’t be able to control if I was or not. It scared me shitless that one day I might be sending my daughter to school with a black eye and fractured ribs because she forgot to put the dishes away before going to bed, or that she might not be able to take as much as I did and I might come home to find her limp body on the floor with a note telling me to go fuck myself, and I might not even care about it other than the fact that now I’d have to deal with what to do next.

“But for as scared as all those thoughts made me, I knew they were just that: intrusive thoughts. Because Steve had never lied to me once, never, in all the years I’d known him, and I knew that if he had a hunch about something, he was almost always right about it. And if he believed that I could be different, that I could be the dad I had always hoped for and wanted to be, then he was probably right about that, too. He told me that he knew from the look I got when I reiterated that we had a daughter out in the hall that I already loved her more than anything, and that I would never hurt her for anything in the whole wide world. Then he stood up, and he helped me up, too, and after helping me breathe more normally, he led me out of the bathroom.

“Lindsay smiled as we walked out and asked if everything was alright, and Steve told her it was just last minute anxiety, but that I was fine. And you know what, dad? I was. Because I knew that I was nothing like you, and that alone is what made me reach out and take our daughter from Lindsay’s arms, because I wanted to prove to myself that I was right.”

Billy was fully crying now, tears running down his cheeks in rivers, a constant flow that dripped from his chin and fell onto his jeans, his shoes, the floor. His nose was running a little bit and his throat was scratchy and his head was beginning to ache a little bit, but he didn’t care. He had come this far, and he was going to keep going until he’d said everything, aired every grievance he’d had to deal with and told him how he’d overcome them.

“Right after I picked her up, a nurse came in, holding a clipboard. She said that it was the birth certificate, and that everything was filled out except for our baby’s name. She looked at me, I guess because I was holding her, but I was too busy being happy that none of those terrible thoughts I’d had earlier were coming true and watching my daughter watch me to notice, so Steve said it. It’d taken us months to decide on what name we would go with depending on if it was a boy or a girl, but once we had them, we knew. I remember, in the early stages, when we would just toss names around, Steve had suggested something like ‘Lassie’ for a girl, and I almost smacked him upside the head. But then I was reading my textbook for class one night and saw one of the editor’s names, and I said to him, ‘what about Talia?’ And that was it. we decided that her middle name was going to be Ruth, after Steve’s grandmother, and it just had a nice ring to it.

“I remember when we got the official certificate a few days later, and I saw Talia Ruth Harrington written on paper for the first time. The way Steve tells it, I almost fainted, but I don’t remember that. All I remember is how the paper trembled, because when I held it, my hands were shaking. They did that every single time I held one of my kids’ birth certificates for the first time, and they’re going to do it again in a few months when our next baby is born. She’ll be number six, because Steve and I are both crazy, but me even more so, because I finally gave in and told him nothing would make me happier than to give him his dream family. And so far, I have.

“After Talia was born, I finished up my degree and started looking around for good jobs. I was open to anything, no matter where it was, and because our apartment was too small now that Talia was starting to grow more, we had to move anyway. We saved up as much as we could, and by the time Talia had turned one, we had a plan. I found a job at a small marine institute just outside of Ocean City, Maryland, and we decided to move there. We found a nice, three bedroom house about a ten minute walk from the beach for a reasonable price, and we bought it. We had only been moved in for about a month when Steve started teasing me about what we should do with the extra bedroom, and I knew what he was getting at, but I wanted to wait until we saved up a little bit more and until Talia was a little older. He agreed with me on that, and for another year, we did our best to raise our daughter and earn enough money to start thinking about another kid. Steve even got a job at a local daycare to help make ends meet and to make sure Talia was well cared for during the day while I was at work.

“And then, as luck would have it, just as we became financially stable and as Talia started to become more independent, we got our wish. Steve was opening up the daycare one day, and as he approached the door, he heard something from behind one of the fences. His coworker had just shown up, so he asked her to take Talia inside and he went to investigate, and the first thing he did when he found out what it was was open his cell phone and call me. He said he’d found a baby, no older than a month, wrapped in a blanket and just left there behind the fence with a note. It said ‘I can’t give my baby a good home, and I don’t know what to do. I figured someone here might. She’s healthy and has all her shots. Her birthday is August 5th, 1995.’ And that was it.

“Steve said that he was going to call the proper authorities, but he suggested that maybe we could take in the baby. He said we were thinking about it anyway and it couldn’t be a coincidence that another baby had just fallen into our laps like that, and I said that as long as it was a legal adoption, I’d be on board with it. It took a few months, a lot of money and entirely too much paperwork, but finally, we were given our second daughter. Because the mother had never named her, she had been dubbed Baby Doe by the court system up until that point, but once we were legally her parents, we got to name her. We went with Violet Frances Harrington, and then we were settled again for another few years.

“But Steve always wanted an even number of kids, and an even ratio of boys to girls, so once we got Violet settled and we were able to find a bigger house, we decided to go for baby number 3. It was 1997 at this point, and even though we were thinking about selling the old house before we had more kids, once again, fate stepped in. We hadn’t found a new place just yet, and we were toying around with the idea of either converting the attic or basement to a room or splitting the bigger of the girl’s bedrooms in half to make another when the adoption agency we went through called us. They said that they might have something for us, and asked if we wanted to come down and speak with them in person. We said we would, and the next day, we were sitting in an office when the lady who called us walked in and handed us two pictures.

“She said that a few days ago, a mother came in and gave her two sons up for adoption. She was young, probably in college or even high school, but she said she just wasn’t ready to be a mother and she wanted her babies to have a good home. The lady said that she’d called the list of potential parents, but none of them really wanted twins, so she eventually got to us. She said we could take some time to talk about it if we wanted, and then she left the room, and as soon as she did, I looked at Steve.

“I could tell from the smile on his face that he was already sold, and he told me that we should totally do it, because then it would even things up and we wouldn’t even need to get a new place or renovate ours, because then the girls could room together and the boys could take the other room. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was already in love with the boys, and I was too, so instead of answering him, I just went to the door and told the lady we’d be happy to take them in. She smiled and helped us fill out the necessary paperwork, and even though the boys already had names, she said we could change them if we wanted. We’d already had our hearts set on either Nathan or Gavin for our first boy, so we made those their first names, but we hadn’t decided on middle names yet, so we just gave them the names their mother had. And just like that, Nathan Jay Harrington and Gavin Anthony Harrington were joining our not-so-little-anymore family.

“After that, we were content for a while. I started thinking about getting my doctorate, Steve had moved up the ranks until he was practically running the daycare, and our kids continued to grow faster than we could keep up with. Before we knew it, Talia was starting school, Violet was learning to ride a bike, and the boys were curious about any and everything under the sun. Our house began to feel a little small, though, so we started looking around for a bigger place. We finally found one, a seaside mansion that was almost too much, but we made it work. I remember we told the kids Santa might not bring as many presents that year because he couldn’t make them fast enough. Really, Steve and I just couldn’t afford as many presents as we usually got them, but come Christmas morning, we had found a way to spoil them even though we barely had a dollar to our names. Anyway, the house was huge, and even though it only had four real bedrooms, the twins still wanted to share and there were a few extra rooms in the basement and main floor, so we figured if we had any more kids or the twins decided they wanted to separate, we could just use one of them.

“And after we’d been in the house for about a year, Steve started getting baby fever again. This was the first time we’d ever tried looking into the foster care system instead of adoption agencies or surrogates. We were just looking around at that point, not really deciding anything, Steve was just antsy and looking for the hell of it, but then he asked me one night as we were going to bed if I would want to foster this little boy he’d found when he was just looking around for fun. He said that he was about a year old, could already walk, and was able to say simple words. He knew I was a little baby-d out at that point, so he said this time we wouldn’t have to start from scratch, we would just be picking up at an easier point. The twins were 4 by then, Violet was 6 and Talia was 8, so he said they could all start helping out around the house a little more and they would be able to help with the boy if we needed them to. And because I can’t say no to him and he did make a good point, I said I’d think about it. He obviously knew I meant yes, so a couple weeks later, we brought him home. We had only had him for about two days when Steve and the kids all practically begged me to adopt him.

“He already had a name, which was fine by us, because we didn’t really have anything in mind when Steve had started looking around, but I still got that same shaky, fluttery feeling when I first saw Leo Matthew Harrington printed on the birth certificate in my hands. All the kids had been with us that day when we went to the courthouse, and as soon as we showed them the piece of paper and told them that it meant Leo was officially their brother, they all started cheering at the top of their lungs. We got a dirty look from the receptionist, but Steve and I couldn’t help but laugh. Even Leo started squealing and shrieking with joy, and since it was a sunny Saturday in May, we took the kids to the boardwalk to get ice cream.”

Billy was still crying, but now he wiped his eyes and walked around the side of the bed, and sat in the chair at his father’s bedside after taking out his wallet. He opened it and thumbed through it, eventually finding what he was looking for and holding it up in front of his father’s face. It was a picture, taken just a few months ago, on the beach right outside their house. He couldn’t remember who had taken it, probably some couple or kid walking by, but he remembered how happy he was in that moment.

“This is my family,” he said, the tears coming back with twice as much force and his voice beginning to wobble even more. “The man sitting next to me is my husband. The little girl behind us with the black hair and beige colored skin and almond eyes is Talia. The little black girl sitting next to me with the heart shaped sunglasses is Violet. They’re my daughters.” He paused again, wiping his nose as his voice broke and he took a breath to steady himself. “The little boy next to Steve with the blue glasses and red hair is Leo, and the two blond boys on our laps are the twins. Nathan is on my lap and Gavin is on Steve’s, and I can tell them apart because Gavin only smiles with his teeth and Nathan only smiles with his lips. They’re my sons.”

His father lifted a shaky hand to try and take the picture, but Billy held it out of his reach. It was too precious to him to even think about letting his dad hold it, especially since he couldn’t really respond this whole time and he didn’t know if he would, like, rip it up or something. He didn’t want to risk it. It was too important to him.

“In a few weeks, I’m going to get to hold my third baby girl. Her name is going to be Samantha Christie Harrington. From what we can guess, we assume she’s going to have pale skin and brown hair. We don’t know if her eyes are going to be blue or brown, or even hazel. We don’t know if she’s going to be born healthy, although we’re praying that she will, and we don’t know when her birthday is going to be or at what time she’ll be born. But we do know that the girls are ecstatic about getting a little sister, and the boys are excited for Aunt Max and Uncle Lucas to stay over with them while we’re at the hospital. We know that no matter what this child looks, acts, or is like, we’re going to love her just as much as we love all the rest of them. And we know that we’re ready and able to do that, because we’ve already done it five times before, no matter how scared we were or how tired or how uncertain we were.”

“Billy, I-” his father tried to get a word in, but Billy wasn’t having it.

“No, you shut the fuck up, I’m not finished!” He bordered on yelling, but he made himself regain control. He slipped the picture back into his wallet and put it back into his pocket, just trying to busy himself until he could be sure he wasn’t going to lash out again. His father was silent the entire time.

“Listen, dad, I didn’t come here to yell. I didn’t come here to get angry or to get an apology or even an explanation, I’m past all that shit. I came here because I heard you were dying, and despite how much shit you put me through, I couldn’t make myself hate you enough to just ignore that. I also can’t make myself love you enough not to come and forgive you and let you meet your grandchildren and your son-in-law. And as much as it kills me, I can’t make myself stop loving you no matter how hard I try, and I fucking try. But you were the only one who stayed. When Mom split, when Grandma died, when Uncle Jerry went to prison. You could’ve tossed me out like yesterday’s garbage since there was no one else around to give a damn, but you stayed. You put food in my stomach and you kept clothes on my back and, I don’t know, maybe deep down inside you, you really were just trying to make me become a better person, and I can’t hate you for that. But somewhere along the way, your wires got crossed, and you took it too far. You had this... this rage inside you and for some reason, you thought the best person to take it out on was your pre-teen son. And then I guess something broke inside you, because it seemed like you started to actively look for things to justify one more punch, one more insult, one more punishment. First it was because I wasn’t into sports like you were and I couldn’t hit a baseball to save my life. Then it was because I was queer, and having a faggot for a son wasn’t “right”. Then it was because of the music I liked, or the jewelry, or the people I hung out with or the grades I had. Nothing was ever good enough for you, I was never good enough for you.”

Billy paused again. He needed to wrap this up. He hadn’t even packed an overnight bag, just a few things to keep him occupied on the plane rides there and back. So he sucked in another breath and he sat up straight, and for the first time since he’d gotten the phone call that his dad was dying, he felt the weight lifting off of his chest.

“But I don’t need to be good enough for you anymore, and I know that now. It took a long time and a lot of therapy, but I know it. Now I know that I’m good enough to be another person’s entire world, so much so that they put a ring on my finger to make sure I’d be with them until we’re old and gray. We have bad days, we’re not perfect, we fight, but at the end of the day I’m good enough to man up and tell him I’m sorry and I want to make things right because I love him. I’m good enough to sit on the boardwalk with my Violet and throw bread at seagulls, and I’m good enough to walk around looking for seashells with my Talia while she tells me about the really cute boy that smiled at her in class. I’m good enough to play dinosaurs with Nathan with one hand and color with Gavin in one of his coloring books with the other, and I’m good enough to sing Leo to sleep when nothing else will even make him doze. I’m good enough to make amends with the people I’ve hurt because I actually want to, and not just because I’m on my deathbed and I want a better chance at getting into Heaven. And I’m good enough to hold my Samantha for the first time and tell her how much I love her and mean it. And I did all that by myself, because I wanted to prove that I was better than you, and that I would always be better than you, because you made my life hell and I’m still dealing with the aftermath. Every day it’s a struggle, but I know that I’m going to come out on top, because the hard part is over. I’m already out of your clutches. And I’m not going to take that or anything that’s resulted from me getting away for granted, because it’s too important to me.”

Billy stood up, wiped away the last of his tears with his jacket, and cleared his throat again as he headed for the door. He opened it and was planning on just walking right out and not stopping until he was in a car and headed for the airport, but something made him stop. He stared out into the blinding white hallway of the hospital for a second, and finally turned one more time to face the man on the bed. He didn’t owe him anything. But he had already bared his heart and soul to him, what was two more words?

“Goodbye, Neil,” he said.

And with that, he was gone.

*************************************************************

Billy had gotten home the same night he left, albeit very late at night. He was more tired than he had ever been before, and he wanted nothing more than a nice hot shower and to curl up beside Steve in bed. But after the day he’d had, he couldn’t just do that. Something was still tugging in his guts, and he wasn’t sure if it was because of the way he’d left things with Neil or if it was because he hadn’t eaten anything that day except for the little snack packets the flight attendants had given him and a snickers bar from the hospital vending machine that was probably as old as some of the patients. Either way, he was too tired to deal with it, so he just went inside, got his hot shower, and put on his pajamas before crawling under the covers with Steve. He was lying on his side with his back to Billy, so he shifted until their bodies were perfectly in line and he wrapped his arms around him, nuzzling his face into Steve’s neck. He only sat up a little bit when he felt a smaller body on the other side of Steve, only to find Leo curled up against Steve’s chest.

“You gotta make me a recording of you singing for the next time you’re out of town,” Steve mumbled, his voice thick with sleep. “This was the only way I could get him to even close his eyes.”

Billy’s heart melted in his chest as he said it, and it only turned further into goop when Steve turned his head and craned his neck to give him a kiss before snuggling back into the covers. And as Billy settled in with him, his arms around both his husband and his son, the tugging feeling in his gut finally stopped.

*************************************************************

Three days later, he got the phone call from the hospital that Neil was dead.

It’d been a busy Thursday morning in July, and while he and Steve were running around trying to get the kids up, dressed, fed and out the door for daycare, the phone rang. Billy was using one hand to wipe the maple syrup from Gavin’s face the the other to help Violet with her hair, and he couldn’t tell you what Steve was doing for a million dollars, so he didn’t even know the phone had been ringing until Talia walked over and handed it to him.

“It’s for you, daddy,” she said, then walked away to do whatever she’d been doing before. Billy had finally gotten the syrup of Gavin’s face and Violet was satisfied with her hair, so Billy stood up and took the cordless phone into a different room so he could hear better.

It was the nurses at the hospital. They said that they were sorry for his loss and that Neil had passed away that morning. They told him that he was the only one Neil had listed as next of kin, and that they would hold the body until arrangements could be made for his funeral. Then they offered their condolences and told him that he could call back at the number they gave whenever the arrangements had been made. Billy had gone on auto-pilot when he thanked them, and when he hung up, his chest felt hollow. He wasn’t happy or sad or angry or even relieved, no, he just felt numb.

He didn’t want to make the damn funeral arrangements. He didn’t want to have to explain to his kids that the man who’s body they were seeing being lowered into the ground was their grandfather, but they never met him because he hurt their daddy and would’ve probably hurt them, too if he’d ever been given the chance. He didn’t want his father to be dead, but he didn’t know if he was upset about it either. He was too confused and he didn’t know what to feel, but he still felt like he was about to burst with something, so he did the only thing he could think to do.

He took the handheld phone and hurled it at the wall as he let out a deep, animalistic howl of a yell, and crumbled to the floor with his head down and his shoulders hunched to try and keep it all under control. His ears were ringing, so he didn’t hear the six sets of footsteps running towards him from the kitchen until he felt one pair of arms wrap around him gently.

“Hey, Billy, what’s wrong? What happened?” Steve asked, tapping a beat on Billy’s shoulder to help him regulate his breathing, a trick he’d learned years ago and still remembered even though he rarely had to use it anymore.

“That was the hospital,” he said, choking out the words. “He’s dead, Stevie.”

“Who’s dead?” Nathan asked, his blue eyes big and round with questioning.

“Just... somebody that daddy used to know,” Steve said, hoping that that was the right answer. Billy would’ve told him if it wasn’t, but he didn’t say anything now, and neither Nathan nor any of their other kids questioned any further. Instead, they gathered around their father, all piling on top of him to give him kisses and hugs and tell him they loved him. Billy felt like a volcano, but only after the eruption, like his little outburst had been the hard part and now, with the help of his family, the magma was settling and the lava was cooling down into solid rock. He wrapped his arms around all of his kids in the most awkward group hug in the history of group hugs, but not one of them cared. It helped Billy to calm down, and that’s what was important.

*************************************************************

A week after the call from the hospital, the phone rang again, and again, Talia was the one to answer. The handheld had been pieced back together with Steve’s nimble hands and half a roll of masking tape, but it would do for now. Billy still felt bad for breaking the phone, but he’d stopped apologizing for it when Steve told him that if he did it again, he’d break it worse so that he would stop. It was a joke, obviously, but it worked, and Billy had stopped apologizing for it.

They hadn’t had a funeral. Not a real one, at least. Steve had taken the kids again and Billy headed out to Indianapolis again, having to stay overnight this time, but he didn’t care. He hadn’t felt much of anything since the call, and was kind of distant for a few days, but he hoped that once his dad’s body was in the ground and he was back home, he would be okay. He just needed time to process.

Steve and the kids were giving him all the time he needed, the kids making sure they were on their best behavior and Steve doing anything he could to make sure Billy was alright. He’d talked to his therapist and was able to work through it a little bit, but the things Steve and the kids were doing were helping, and he was grateful for it.

He’d only stayed in Indianapolis for two days, one to pick out the casket and set things into motion, and the other to make sure they actually got him in the ground. He didn’t even wait for the headstone to be carved, instead just told them to make sure he got one and that would be that before heading for home once again. Steve and the kids had all run up to him to hug him as soon as he stepped in the door, and, per his request, they all sat on the beach that night and fed the seagulls as they watched the sunset. None of them spoke much, they just sat, but they were all perfectly okay with that. And the next day, Billy started to act like himself again, a little at a time.

Now, he was almost completely back to normal. His head still felt a little heavy, but it was mostly gone, and he didn’t even think twice when Talia handed him the phone and said, “It’s for you, daddy.”

It was the hospital again, but this time, it was much closer to home. Georgia, the lady who was carrying their baby, had just gone into labor and had checked into the hospital. Billy nearly threw the phone again in his rush to get to Steve and tell him the news.

Samantha had decided that she was going to come out a week early, so Billy and Steve had to wrangle five children into their mini-van by themselves as Billy called Max. She and Lucas lived in Pennsylvania, so they were going to be a little while, but Max said she was already leaving work and that they’d be there as soon as they could to get the kids. Billy thanked her and told her which hospital they were going to, then hung up as Steve drove through the town.

When they got there, Steve went to check on Georgia, and Billy stayed in the waiting room with the kids. It was just beginning to get dark out, Leo should’ve already been in bed, but Billy was too jittery to worry about that now. An hour and a half later, Max and Lucas showed up, both hugging him and Steve and saying congratulations before swapping keys with Steve and taking the kids back to the van to head back home. Steve walked them to the elevator and then returned to Billy’s side, holding his hand like he always did and pretending he wasn’t just as nervous until a few hours later, when the nurse finally came out and told them to follow her.

Georgia was asleep by the time they got into the room, but her husband was awake, still holding her hand. He used his other one to shake with Billy and Steve and congratulate them, and finally, the nurse came in with Samantha.

At this point, it was tradition to let Steve hold her first. She was asleep, or at least she looked it, as Steve picked her up, but as soon as he put his hand underneath her head, her eyes opened up and she began to cry. Steve tried to soothe her, but nothing seemed to work, and her little face got red as she continued to scream. It woke Georgia up and she tried to calm her down, but even she couldn’t do anything to quiet the baby.

But this girl had a set of pipes on her, and finally, she had screamed so loud and so long that it was almost excruciating to listen to. Steve took her back from Georgia and tried again, but it was useless, and he sighed.

“Here, Bill, you try and calm her down. Nothing we’re doing seems to be working,” he said, and handed Samantha off to Billy.

As soon as he had her tiny body cradled in his arms, the baby stopped crying. It was almost instantaneous, and even though her face was still a little red and blotchy, she blinked her big eyes up at him and smiled.

“Well I’ll be damned,” Steve smiled, wrapping his arm around Billy’s waist. “Glad to know she’s already chosen her favorite parent.”

Billy wanted to laugh at that, but he couldn’t think about much of anything else at the moment except his daughter’s big, dark eyes boring into his. He smiled at her and rubbed her belly with his finger, making her gurgle and coo in response. She took her own tiny hand and raised it just enough to grab onto Billy’s finger, holding it with an iron grip. Or, at least the newborn equivalent of an iron grip.

She continued to stare into his eyes and hold onto him for a long time, but after a while, her grip weakened and her eyes slipped closed. As she fell asleep in Billy’s arms, Steve came back over from making small talk with Georgia and her husband. Georgia was exhausted, and frankly, so was her husband, and they had begun to fall asleep again as well, leaving Billy and Steve as the only ones awake. Billy was still just staring at Samantha, though, and only noticed Steve by his side when he nudged him lightly with his shoulder.

“Hey,” he said, wrapping his arm around him and playing with the hair on the back of his neck. “You doing okay?”

And when Billy thought about it, he found that he really, really was.

“Yeah,” he replied, “I’ve never been more okay in my entire life.”

#my boys deserve a good happy life with minimal angst #and that's exactly what they're gonna get #and they deserve closure #so they're gonna get that too #and neil hargrove can suck an egg #harringrove #billy hargrove #steve harrington #parentgrove

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bonesandthebees · 9 months

Note

I promised myself I would write my chapter 4 analysis before the end of the year, so don’t mind me cashing in about 4 hours before my deadline (the time zones are not in my favour given the fact I’m 9 hours ahead of you but shhhhhhhh).

Anyway, I’ve already sent an ask about Sandduo, though that was only one part of the conversation and there’s so much more. But first, the meeting itself.

It’s not just Quackity and Wilbur. It’s also Schlatt and Niki, which makes things spicy. See, Wilbur saw Niki plenty after his arrangement with Quackity was made, and he did not tell her for reasons I’ll get to. But now Niki is here and she definitely knows about Wilbur not telling her. Quackity says she was a last minute decision, but she already knew Wilbur was hiding something last he saw her. How late was she actually told? Or did she pick up that Wilbur was lying about something else. Maybe she can just tell when he feels guilty. It’s not the first time he’s lied to her after all.

Schlatt is also interesting, without anyone else there to judge him (or someone whose judgement he cares about) we really get to see his true feelings come out. The other character also show more of their true nature. We get to see that Schlatt’s hatred for Niki is mutual. (And honestly, deserved.)

I love the way that it’s set up as a meeting between the two potential heirs (now turned 2/3) and their respective right hand men. Niki has Wilbur while Quackity has Schlatt. Both spilled the beans on Sam still considering his other options despite Tomys arrival. (So Wilbur made the right choice in tell Niki.)

I’m not sure if Niki is trying to hold the info Wilbur gave her over Quackity’s head or simply testing how much he knows (and thus how useful Schlatt will be as a ally/how much of an additional threat he will be) . It could be both.

Anyway, while everyone else drops their facades, Wilbur keeps his up. He keeps choosing his words carefully because there’s still another layer to this conversation. He always has to think about what his father wants him to say or reveal. He’s pretending to show all his cards and tell them everything he knows while still hiding as much as he can. He’s still trying to keep the upper hand.

(1/?)

-🎄

IT'S NOW 2024 AND I'M FINALLY GETTING AROUND TO THIS (definitely don't think too hard about why I'm suddenly answering a bunch of rose asks) (definitely won't be posting anything today) (certainly not)

niki was told about the meeting literally a few hours before at dinner earlier that same night. while wilbur was acting strange around her, she is also starting to grow used to it because she can tell he's keeping things from her, so she didn't think too much of it. then quackity invited her to the meeting, and although he didn't tell her wilbur was going as well she figured it out pretty quickly, so she wasn't surprised when wilbur walked in. she knows he lied to her, and at this point this is becoming a pattern she's forced to accept.

schlatt and niki hating each other is one of my favorite dynamics it's so funny. and yes we get to see schlatt's truly unfiltered side start to come out (or is it really unfiltered? is he really laying all his cards out on the table at this time? hmm things to consider)

oh yeah wilbur made a very good choice telling niki she was still an option or else that would've been awkward

the game is still being played in a meeting like this. even with the illusion of privacy, wilbur can't trust quackity and schlatt, therefore he can't show his cards. he can only pretend to.

#ask #spruce anon #rose ch 4

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mcrb2dt-evans · 1 year

Text

Written in collaboration with @chrisevansonly , here’s how the night went for Teddy on his birthday🤭

••••••••••

Dani walked over to Teddy where she saw him sitting by himself at the edge of the pool and she sat down next to him “you know your super awesome birthday party is happening over there in the yard right?” He just shrugged. Dani nodded “I saw Elodie leave earlier, you happen to know anything about that?” He looked down “she’s going back to London..” “and you’re letting her go?!” Teddy snapped back “I don’t want her to go but she’s happy in London, she has a whole other life and she needs to live it..”

Dani rolled her eyes “you read her letter yeah? Did you two talk about that earlier?” He shook his head “I pretended that I didn’t read it” Dani yelled “What the hell is wrong with you?! You’re twenty two years old! Grow a pair already and tell her you love her!” “It’s not that easy Danica!” “Yes Theodore, it is!” She stood up “you’re about to miss out on the greatest person in your life all because you’re too scared to take a chance!” He yelled back “I don’t want to ruin our friendship especially if it doesn’t work out!” “You’re already ruining it by pushing her away dipshit!” He shook his head “just but out Nickie alright” Dani nodded “you know, I was really hoping that the evans gene that only runs in the males of this family to royally fuck their lives up would have skipped you but apparently it didn’t”

•••••••••••

“do you wanna talk about it?”

Elodie looked over at her dad who’d entered the room, Harry had watched her come home slightly deflated. He’d been the one person Elle would come to for anything, he really could read her like a book, maybe it had to do with Teddy’s party? He wasn’t sure

“it’s nothing I didn’t expect, I knew I shouldn’t have written that letter dad…why would I ever think he’d love me back?” Harry watched her pack her bags intently “How do you know that? Did you ask him about it?” “No. Didn’t have too, I just knew he didn’t, and that’s okay! Im going back to London anyway..”

Harry signed “You still have that offer from Harvard and Boston U, you sure you want to just pack up and leave?” “What’s the point in staying anymore.”

Harry would be lying if he said his heart wasn’t hurting for his baby girl, even their closest friends and relatives could see just how in love with each other Teddy and Elodie really were. There had obviously been some miscommunication between the two young adults, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t still time to fix this.

“I don’t think you should give up petal, i’ve seen Teddy with you, he really does love you just as much as you love him…don’t give up” Elodie sighed shaking her head “I can’t ruin what we have now with a what if..”

“okay, I’ll respect whatever decision you make but just know i’m proud of you, i love you and any choice you make, mum and I’ll support you, even your brothers” Elle smiled thanking her dad by pressing a kiss to his cheek and wrapping her arms around him “thanks dad, i love you…i’ll be ready to leave in 20”

Harry simply nodded before leaving his daughter to have her privacy, secretly hoping that she’d give it one last go and let her heart be happy. Only time would tell if Elle would give it a go, or if she’d leave to London, only regretting that simple ‘what if.’

•••••••••

You walked into the den and saw teddy laying on the couch watching a movie. You walked over to him and tapped his legs so you could sit down. He sighed “mama I know what you’re going to say but please don’t” you shrugged “I wasn’t going to say anything” Teddy sat up “..you weren’t..?” You shook your head “nope, you’re twenty two years old. You’re a big boy who can make his own decisions”

You both sat in silence for a moment, until Teddy broke it “what if it doesn’t work out mama?” You gave him a soft smile “and what if it does Teddy bear? You need to be brave enough to take that leap” you stood and kissed the top of his head before walking away.

Teddy sat contemplating until he picked up his phone and dialed Elodies number. It rang and rang but it went right to voicemail. He hung up and tried again and this time he was sent immediately to voicemail “shit..” he stood and ran to the front door, grabbing the first set of car keys he found and yelled “I’m going out mom! I’ll be back!” He slammed the door behind him and ran right to his fathers car. He got in and took off like a bat out of hell, hoping to catch Elodie before she left her home.

He made it to the styles’ home in ten minutes. He got out and ran right to the front door, frantically banging on it. Swinging open the door Teddy was met with Elijah, the middle styles child who smiled “Hey T, what’s up?” He could tell Teddy was out of breath and feeling quite frazzled

“Is Elle here?!”

Eli’s smile was then downturned at the reasoning behind Teddy’s erratic visit, he almost felt bad about the fact that he’d have to deliver the bad news “Oh shit….uh you just missed her by 5 minutes, im sorry Teddy, do you want to come in?”

Before Teddy could answer a sympathetic smile belonging to Eli’s mother appeared “Teddy, if you leave now you’ll be able to catch her, she’s gone to terminal 2 at the airport in Boston, her flight isn’t until 8:30 tonight, i told Harry to take the long way incase you’d show up”

There was a slight look of shock on Teddy’s face at Ro’s revelation to the situation, a blush spreading across his cheeks “You knew I’d show up…?” Walking over to the young boy standing in her front hallway, Ro patted his shoulder gently

“Bear, she’s loved you her whole life, you’re her entire world…I knew you’d come someday, don’t let her get away from you, I know you would bring her the stars if you could…you’re family, you always have been”

Teddy pulled Ro into a hug, a silent thank you for being such a constant friend and even like a second mother to him at times. He’d always been so thankful to have the space to be himself with Elodie, and Ro had been a big part in that, as much as his mother.

Elijah and Ro couldn’t help but laugh as he sprinted back out the front door, knowing and hoping he’d catch her before she left: truthfully Ro knew he would.

Teddy got back in the car and sped off, hoping he wasn’t too far behind Ellie. Flying down one of the back roads he saw a car up ahead and went faster to pull up beside it. Finally able to pull up along side it, he looked over and saw Elodie in the passenger seat. He laid his hand on the horn until it got her attention. Her eyes went wide when she saw him and Teddy watched her turn to her dad and motioned for him to pull over. Teddy slowed down and pulled off to the side of the road and jumped out as Harry pulled up behind the car.

When Teddy saw Elodie jump out with a furious expression he held his hands up “wait! Just hear me out okay?! Don’t go to London Ellie. I did read your letter and I feel stupid for pretending like I didn’t, I was scared to ruin this, to lose you as my best-“

He took a breath “I was scared to lose you. I love you Elodie, I have loved you every single day for as long as I can remember..” he walked closer to her “so please, don’t leave. Stay here, in Boston, with me”.

There were many things running through Elodie’s head at the moment, was Teddy’s confession real? It had to have been if he’d gone through the trouble of finding her before she made it to the airport

“I-Don’t…I don’t understand bear…you made it seem like you didn’t even care to read what I wrote, I kept wondering what you thought, if I had crossed a line, embarrassed myself…”

Teddy quickly shook his head, stepping closer, making note that Elle wasn’t moving away, a clear sign to take her hands in his, he wasn’t willing to let her move even an inch in fear she’d slip away once again, and secretly Elle was thinking the same thing.

“I know, and I’ll keep apologizing for as long as I need to, but I promise you…you’re it for me, every feeling and every emotion you wrote down in that letter, I feel it too…for you, and only you”

Blinking up at him she tried to rein in her racing mind, her heart beating rapidly in her chest before she looked down at their hands which were still intertwined

“What if it doesn’t work…what if you realize you don’t actually love me and I stay here instead of going back to London.”

Shaking his head he closed his eyes briefly “I don’t want to think about the what if’s, i’m tired of that, you love me right?” “So so much bear”. If he wasn’t listening to her so intently he would have missed it with how softly she spoke

“Then that’s what matters, nothing else, stay and we’ll take things day by day, I love you and that’s what counts, I won’t let you get away again.”

Elodie couldn’t help the tears that lined her eyes, never in a million years did she think she’d meet her person, the one who made her feel so special, so appreciated and so cared for like Teddy had been making her feel her entire life.

“I’ll stay”

Teddy couldn’t help the smile that broke out as he swiped a few tears from Elodie’s cheeks “Yeah?”

“Yeah, I love you bear…always have”

Teddy stroked the apples of her cheeks before he stilled. He leaned down and gently kissed her but stopped when he heard Harry clear his throat. Teddy and Elodie laughed and Teddy looked over at Harry “sorry Harry, I’ve just been wanting to kiss her for a long time but I’ll respect boundaries, I promise and I won’t hurt her, you have my word. Mama raised me right and even she would have my ass if I ever hurt Ellie”

Harry laughed, honestly he wanted to seem all tough and scary but knowing Teddy for as long as he had, seeing just how sweet he was with Elle, was enough to have him smiling seeing his baby girl as elated as she was

“Teddy, you never have to apologize to me, you make Elle the happiest she’s been and that’s what I care about.” Teddy nodded before Harry continued “Your family, you always have been, always will be no matter what. I know you’ll treat her the way she deserves, you’ve already been doing it since you were kids”

Harry smiled at the two of them, Elle squeezing her dad in a hug before returning to Teddy’s side, tucking herself against him “Now, i’m hungry and i’ve got a wife at home begging me for updates, you mind bringing her home later?”

Teddy smiled, looking down at Elle before shaking his head “Not at all.” “Only if I get to play my music…?” Teddy and Harry both laughed, obviously she would get to play her music“I think that could be arranged”

As Elle watched her dad get into his car and drive away, she couldn’t help but bring Teddy in for another kiss, a smile on her face when they pulled away “Thank you for never letting go Bear”

He kissed her again “never ever Ellie jelly belly” she laughed and playfully rolled her eyes. They started walking back to Teddys car and just before they got in Elodie spoke “you know our mothers will never ever let this go right? Like we’ll be hearing about this for the rest of our lives” Teddy laughed and nodded “yeah but I’m looking forward to hearing it for the rest of our lives”

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